Digimon Adventure - The Loss of Hope
by PMC123
Summary: A complete twist on Digimon Adventure and it's storyline. TK is left in the digital world all by himself. What will become of him? How will he change? What adventures will he have as the only human in the digital world? What type of person will he grow into? Will he ever see his family ever or the rest of the digi-destined ever again? Explosive and dramatic story.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone. This is my first ever digimon fic. **

**I've always liked the character of TK. I honestly felt the writers of Digimon didn't do enough with him. He wasn't given much development and never really allowed to shine on his own. It was always only ever about Tai or Matt. **

**I've decided to write my very own fic where TK is the central character. The story begins from episode 22 of the anime. This episode was always one of my favourites because it's a TK heavy episode and because it's a rare occasion when TK's is given some character growth. The digi-destined gave split up in the digital world and Matt eventually left TK at an amusement park to go for a look around. He never comes back for him though, he leaves him to wait and get upset. This fic will go off in a direction from the anime story from this point. It will be what I think should have happened at this point in the show. **

**Enjoy.**

**Chapter 1 - TK loses Hope**

TK was still sat out staring at the water. He had been waiting here for a whole week now. He was waiting for his big brother to come back, just like he'd promised would. The young boy, no older than 8, had been left all alone in a strange and unfamiliar place with nobody to look after him. Well, nobody except little Tokomon.

"You really should have something to eat TK," squawked the little in-training digimon. TK however didn't answer him. He gaze just remained looking out at the water, his expression unreadable. Tokomon sighed, TK often went into his shell like this when he was upset.

A few more hours passed by with TK still not moving from that spot and not uttering a single word. Tokomon loyally remained at his side (though he'd given up in trying to engage TK in a conversation). Eventually, as the sun was beginning to set, a very unwelcome visitor stopped by.

"Hi there guys, Demi-Devimon's the name. Mind if I drop in?"

TK finally broke his gaze away from the water and turned to look at this new digimon.

"I've heard about you," said Tokomon now.

"Oh I'm flattered," Demi-Devimon replied.

"Don't be, nothing I heard was good."

"Okay, okay. I used to be a bit of a wiseguy but that was only because I was working for Etehmon. But he's kaput now thanks to you, something of which I'm eternally grateful."

"Have you seen my brother?" asked TK now finally speaking up.

"Oh, so that's the reason you look so down huh? You missing your bro? What's his name?"

"His name is Matt," answered TK.

"Well you came to the right digimon. I'll go see if I can find him, you just wait here and I'll be back in a flash."

The bat digimon then turned around and quickly flew off.

"Well maybe he has changed," remarked Tokomon. TK just nodded.

**A few minutes later…..**

Demi-Devimon returned to TK and Tokomon who immediately asked him if he'd had any luck finding Matt and Gabumon.

"Yeah, I sure did," he answered with an mischievous grin.

"Well what did he say? Is he coming back?" TK was desperate for answers.

"I'm sorry to be the one to have to tell you this squirt but your bro ain't coming back. In fact, he never wants to see you again."

"What?" TK stammered, his bottom lip quivering.

"He said he got tired of babysitting a crybaby so he and Gabumon decided to go off on their own and just leave you here. I told him that brothers should stick together and that he should come back for you but he said no. No way was he taking you anywhere with him anymore."

"No way!" cried TK.

"Sorry kiddo but that's the truth. He said he's going to meet up with the rest of your digi-destined friends and that none of those guys want you around anymore either."

"It can't be true TK!" said Tokomon trying to reassure his heartbroken partner but it was no good. TK had already burst into tears and ran away.

**Another few minutes later…**

"Don't believe that guy TK, he has to be lying. You know Matt would never say anything like that and none of the others would want to leave you either. Demi-Devimon's just trying to upset you."

TK again didn't respond to Tokomon's words. He merely just picked up a rock off the floor and then threw it forlornly into the water. Frowning, Tokomon turned around and ran back to speak to Demi-Devimon. He found him nesting in nearby tree.

"Hey you, come here," he ordered.

"What is it?" asked Demi-Devimong with another naughty grin.

"It's you. You need to stop lying to TK and telling him those nasty things."

"Like I told you before, it's the truth. That's what he really said, cross my heart. Anyway, ou got any prove I'm lying, huh?" the bat digimon countered.

"Well no."

"There you go; you're just assuming the worst because of my background. That's not fair, it's prejudice. Just because I ain't a cute pink, cuddly butterball like you, you have to assume that I'm a bad guy. That's… I don't know… superficial. Luckily TK's more enlightened."

Tokomon lost his temper here and fired one of his bubble attacks at Demi-Devimon and it hit him square in the face causing him to fall out of the tree. Unfortunately for Tokomon, TK arrived on the scene just in time to see this.

"TOKOMON WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" he demanded angrily.

"What TK?" the pink digimon responded defensively.

"I saw you take a shot at him! That's a bad thing to do and you know it!"

"Don't be so hard on him TK," Demi-Devimon chimed in. "It's only natural that he feel a little jealous that you've found yourself a new friend."

Tokomon scowled.

"Apologise to him!" ordered TK.

"No way," Tokomon answered stubbornly.

"If you don't apologise then you can just leave." TK was deadly serious.

"You really want me to leave?" asked Tokomon now, his eyes now watery.

"Yes if you don't apologise for what you did. I don't want to be friends with someone who takes cheap shots at others."

Tokomon was left crushed by this. He absolutely wouldn't apologise to a low-life like Demi-Devimon so he realised he only had one option. He turned to walk away.

"I won't be coming back you know," he added at the final moment.

"You don't see me crying about! No go on, just go."

Heartbroken, Tokomon walked off into the trees with tears streaming down his face. He didn't dare look back at TK, he instead hoped the little boy would change his mind and call him back. But he never did. Instead TK along with Demi-Devimon, began to walk off back in the direction of the park.

"You sure put him in his place TK," said the bat digimon from the boy's shoulder.

"Well, he deserves to be taught a lesson. I don't want to be partners with a digimon who acts like he does. Or be friends with people who act those guys did. Leaving me like that. They're all jerks!"

"I absolutely understand TK," he encouraged. "Them all leaving you like that was very selfish on their parts, especially from Matt. He's supposed to be your big brother."

"Don't mention that name," snapped TK now. Just hearing Matt's name now made him sear with emotion. Not with sadness though, now it was white-hot anger.

Demi-Devimon just smiled. He'd done exactly what he'd intended to do and it had worked better than he ever could have imagined.

**First chapter done. What do you think? Please rate and review. More chapters on the way.**


	2. Chapter 2

The digi-gate that connected the human world and the digital world was open again. It shown like a bright light in the sky and it blinding to the eye. It could be seen everywhere in the land.

"Look Gomamon, the gates open!" exclaimed Joe as he looked out of the kitchen window.

"I know, I can't believe answered the furry white digimon.

"Oh my, look at how bright it is," said Gabumon. He and Matt were standing around the back of the restaurant peeling potatoes.

"What is it that Gabumon?" asked Matt as he put his hand over his eyes.

"It's the digi-gate Matt," he explained. "The link between your world and digital world. And it looks like it's opening again!"

"No way…." Matt mouthed.

**Elsewhere**

"MIMI, MIMI," yelled Palmon running into the castle bed chamber. "Look out of the window! You've got to see this!"

"I don't have time for this Palmon," said Mimi dimissively as she was getting her nails done by a stressed Gekomon. "A princess likes me needs her beauty treatments."

"JUST LOOK MIMI!" Palmon begged.

Mimi gave an irritated tut and got up from her make-up chair. She made her way over to the window and looked out.

"OH MY…." she gasped. "What is that?"

"It's the digi-gate Mimi."

**And elsewhere**

"Look Sora, the digi-gate is opening up."

"What's that Biyomon," asked Sora setting down her fishing rod to look up at the light in the sky.

"It's what connects our worlds. You guys came through to get here in the first place."

"And now it's re-opening?"

"That's what it looks like."

**In other location**

"Just look at the Izzy, the digi-gate is opening itself up again!" Tentomon was running around in his usual state of over-dramatics.

"I know Tentomon, it's amazing but mind-blowing at the same time," said Izzy patiently. "Why on earth would the gate be opening itself now?"

"You're guess is as good as mine," answered Tentomon.

Izzy got out his laptop computer and quickly began to type away.

"What are you doing Izzy?" the bug digimon asked now.

"I'm trying to gather any data I can," the genius teen answered. "You know what this means don't you? The digi-opening?"

"Erm…." Tentoman stuttered.

"It means we may able to pass through it and get home!"

**Up at Pixiemon's house**

"I don't like this Gennai, I don't like it all."

"I understand your concerns Pixiemon," answered Gennai. "In fact, I share them."

"Myotismon grows in power every day," said the small but infinitely wise digimon. "Now isn't the right time for the digi-destined to human world."

"I know that Pixiemon but there's nothing I can do. I don't control the digi-gate."

Gennai gave a long sigh after this. He truly hadn't forseen this happening.

"The digi-destined are scattered right now. All in different parts of the digi-world where they're unable to combat the darkness effectively. We needed for them to come back together where they're strongest.

Pixiemon had an unnerving thought whilst Gennai was talking. When he'd finished speaking he voiced his fear aloud.

"Myotismon will surely try to go the human world through the portal."

"Yes, unfortunately. Him and the rest of the darkness from the digital world will seize any opportunity to extend their power. The only ones who can stop them are the digi-destined and their digimon. But until they all come back together as one it won't happen."

"How long do you think before they'll go through the portal?"

"I'm not sure, but it won't be long."

The was an uncomfortable silence between them as they continued to stare at the bright light.

**Back at the restaurant**

Gabumon gasped.

"Matt!"

The blonde boy was beginning to levitate upwards. He felt as if he was being drawn upwards towards the portal.

"GABUMON! WHAT'S HAPPENING!" Matt was in shock at what was happening.

"IT'S THE DIGI-GATE MATT, IT'S DRAWING YOU IN. IT'S TAKING YOU BACK TO YOUR WORLD."

NO," shouted Matt. "I CAN'T GO BACK, NOT WITHOUT TK AND ALL THE OTHERS."

Gabumon grabbed ahold of Matt's leg and tried to pull him back down onto the floor. Even though he used all his body mass to act try and act as an anchor, it was no good. The force was too strong and soon Gabumon was lifted off the floor as well.

"MATT!"

"GABUMON!"

They could hear the yells of Joe and Gomamon not very far away. Eventually Matt managed to spot them both as he continued to drift upwards towards the portal. Joe was hanging onto the hinges of the kitchen door whislt Gomamon was holding onto to him. Before long though Gomamon suffered the same fate as Gabumon. The force was lifted off of the floor too.

Matt looked around and saw Digimon all over the area standing and watching as he levitated upwards. It seemed that the portal was only pulling humans upwards, not digimon.

He eventually reached the light it was so bright he was blinded.

"TK!" he roared before being pulled through.

**At the same time**

"HELP ME! DEMI-DEVIMON! TOKOMON! MATT!"

TK was holding onto a tree for dear life to try and stop himself from being pulled into the air. Demi-Devimon was nowhere to be seen.

"ARGHHHHHHHHHHH!" TK began to wail in fear.

"SOMEBODY HELP ME!"

But his pleas went unanswered.

Eventually his nimble little fingers were unable to hang on anymore and he lost his grip. TK was quickly pulled into the air but after only a few seconds he was still again. TK had closed his eyes but when he stopped moving he opened them again. He was hanging. His backpack had got caught onto a thick branch. He breathed a sigh of relief.

After about 15 minutes the force stopped. TK had by then though had gone to sleep through exhaustion.

**The Real World**

Matt opened his eyes and looked around. And he couldn't believe what met them. He was lying on a plaid of grass and lying around were his friends. Sora and Biyomon, Mimi and Palmon, Joe and Gomamon, Izzy and Tentoman. But where was….

"TK!" he roared quickly getting up. He knew exactly where he was but didn't care. All he cared about was finding TK.

"TK, ARE YOU HERE!? TK PLEASE COME TO ME!"

"Urgh…. Matt? Matt is that you?" Everyone else was waking up.

"Hey, we're all here! What happened? Where are we? How are we all suddenly together like this?"

"TK!" Matt roared again.

"Hey Matt, calm down would yer," said Joe.

"I can't believe it," said Sora looking around. "We're back in the real world!"

"We must have all been pulled through the digi-gate portal," remarked Izzy standing.

"Where's TK!? Have any of you guys seen him?" Matt was growing increasingly distraught.

"Wasn't he with you?" asked Sora.

"No," said Matt dropping his head. "I left him for a while and before I could get back to him this happened."

"Maybe he…." began Izzy before stopping himself.

"Maybe he what!?" demanded Matt.

"Well," began Izzy nervously. Matt was an intimidating individual when his emotions boiled over. "Maybe he was left behind in the digital world."

What little colour was left in Matt's face was drained from it after hearing Izzy's words.

"No…." he mouthed. "No, he's been left there all alone!"

**Back in the digital world**

"So the rest have all gone back? He's the only one left?"

Pixiemon and Gennai were stood underneath the tree where a still unconscious TK was hanging by his backpack.

"Yes," answered Gennai nodding. "They all went back through the portal. He's the only one still here?"

"Poor little guy, left all alone like this."

"He has a tough future in front of him. I could be a very long time before the digi-gate opens again, if it ever opens at all. He will have to face many challenges without his friends help in the meantime."

They observed TK in silence for a little while longer. This little boy now had a huge burden on his young shoulders. He was the only digi-destined left in the digital world. Eventually Pixiemon spoke again.

"Rest whilst you can TK. You have a long , hard road ahead of you. But I have feeling about this kid Gennai old friend. A good feeling that's he strong enough to make it."

**Chapter 2 done. Chapter 3 likely tomorrow. I'll be honest, I'm skimming through these first few chapters as quickly as possible to get them out the way so we can get to the good stuff. The jist of this story is that TK has now been left all alone in the digital world whilst everyone else has gone back to the real world (remember, Tai and Agumon went back in episode 20).**

**TK will now have adventures on his own for a while, all whilst growing up and trying to survive alone. We'll get to them soon. The other characters will be back later.**

**Okay, we've got the boring stuff out of the way. The stage has been set so starting next time this story REALLY starts.**

**Please rate and review.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi there. Time for another chapter where we get deeper into this story and it truly get's going. **

**Sorry about any mistakes. I know I've probably made them but I don't have time to edit.**

TK awoke and his eyes with a very strange and scary view. He was looking downwards and his feet were off the ground. 15 feet off of the ground in fact. He didn't yelp with fear as expected though, in fact the young remained strangely calm at his predicament.

"Oh boy, how do I get myself out of this one." These were his thoughts. He eventually managed to twig that he was stuck in a tree. How did he get stuck up here he wondered? Where was everybody? What had happened? Then it all came flooding back.

Matt, Tokomon, the bright light, the pulling force. It all hit him like a runaway train. Now he did begin to cry.

"(cry), Matt, (cry), Tokomon, (sob), they're all gone. (sob) They've all left me."

He was all alone with no one to look after him. Not even Tokomon. Would he ever see him or Matt or the rest of his friends again? He cried even harder just thinking about. He sobs though went unheard.

…...

**Nearby**

"What's that noise?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"Sounds like crying," answered his friend Gotsumon.

"Yeah, I think you're right."

"Shall we go see what it is?"

"Okay?"

The two walked towards the direction of the crying and before long they came across little TK.

"Hey look, it's one of those Digi-destined kids," said Gotsumon pointing up to where TK was in the tree.

"You're right, it looks like he's stuck."

"Should we help him down?"

"Er… I don't know. Didn't the boss say we had to call him if we found any of the digi-destined?"

"Yeah that's right. But come on Pumpkinmon, I thought we agreed that we wouldn't listen to Myotismon anymore? That we'd go off on our own?"

"But what if he finds out? He'll be real mad for sure."

"How's he going to find out? He hasn't brought to see him in weeks anyway. I think he doesn't even want us working for him anymore anyway."

"I guess you're right."

The two digimon friends looked upwards again at the still hysterical TK (who in his dramatics hadn't yet realised they were there).

"So, should we help him down?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"Yeah, okay," came Gotsumon's reply. "HEY KID!" he yelled upwards.

TK ceased his crying and looked down to see the two digimon for the first time.

"You want us to help you down?"

"YES PLEASE!" yelled TK.

"Okay, hang on."

From there Gotsumon ran over and began to climb the tree's trunk. In no time at all he got the spot where TK was hanging.

"Okay kid, I'm going to release your backpack and you're gonna fall. Pumpkinmon is down on the floor and he's going to catch you okay?"

"Okay," TK replied nervously.

"You ready? On 3 then. One. Two. THREE!"

He released TK's backpack and the boy immediately began to fall.

"LOOK OUT!" yelled Pumpkinmon from the floor as TK crash-landed on top of him. Fortunately, the bearer of hope was unharmed. The same couldn't be said for Pumkinmon though. He was seeing tweety-birds from the impact.

"Urgh," he moaned as he lay beneath TK.

"Sorry," said TK awkwardly from on top of him.

"Urgh…. get…. me…" he said incoherently.

"What?" asked TK confused.

"Get off of me," Pumpkinmon managed to so squeak out.

"OH. Sorry."

TK got up and stood back. Pumpkinmon coughed and caught his breath. Gotsumon had climbed down from the tree and walked over.

"Great catch Pumpkinmon," he teased. He then turned towards TK.

"Hey kiddo, you okay."

"Yeah, thanks a lot for helping me?"

"No problem."

"Who are you guys?" TK asked now.

"I'm Gotsumon and this here's Pumpkinmon."

"Gotsumon and Pumpinkmon?"

"That's right. And you're one of those digi-destined aren't yer?"

"Yeah…." TK broke off and dropped his head.

"Where's the rest of your little group then?" asked Pumpkinmon finally managing to stand back up.

"They left me…." TK broke again.

"They left you!?"

TK just nodded.

"Like they just abandoned you."

He nodded again. He then burst out into hysterics again.

"They think I'm a crybaby. They don't want to go anywhere with me anymore and don't like me. Even my own brother!"

"That's horrible."

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon exchanged glances as TK continued to cry.

"Er look kid, stop crying and calm down. It'll be okay."

"No… no… it won't be. I won't see them again. And I'll might not be able to ever see my mom or dad again either. I just want to go home!"

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon looked at one another again and both nodded. Pumpkinmon jerked his head to the left and Gotsumon understood what he meant.

"Look kid, me and Pumpkinmon are just going over he to talk in private for a moment. Calm down and dry your eyes. It ain't that bad."

TK just continued to sob and the two digimon gave up. They both walked back towards the tree trunk and then huddled together.

"Well, what do you want to do about this kid Gotsumon."

"We can't just hand him over to Myotismon. Look at the poor guy. He's all alone and defenceless."

"What should we do then? Help him find his friends?"

"Well he said they left him. What if we find him and they won't take him back?"

"I dunno."

"Well, what do we do then?"

The two digimon both stopped and went into deep thought. What were they supposed to do with TK. They couldn't leave him or alone or take him to anybody.

"I got an idea," announced Gotsumon eventually.

"What?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"Well, it's a deep idea I'll tell you that."

"Just say it."

"Why don't we let him join us?"

Pumpkinmon was floored.

"What do you mean 'let him join us'?"

"I mean, take him around with us. Take care of him."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah seriously. Look at the poor guy Pumpkinmon. He's just a poor kid with nobody. And he looks a decent one. He could prove a really good partner. Let's offer him a spot us with us."

"But, but, but what if Myotismon ever found out?"

"How do you think he'll ever find out? Like I said, we don't work him for anymore and he never calls us anyway. And even if he ever does, we'll just leave the kid behind."

Believe it or not, Pumpkinmon was slowly coming around to the idea or adopting TK. He looked over to the boy (who'd finally stopped crying and was rubbing his eyes).

"He ain't much too look at is he?" he remarked as he sized TK up.

"Well he's only a little kid. We could train him up. And when he's big and stronger he'll be able to protect us. He's a digi-destined remember? He probably knows how to make digimon stronger."

Pumpkinmon gave everything a long thinking over for a few minutes. He eventually made up his mind.

"You know what Gotsumon old buddy, I know this idea of yours is crazy. But it's so crazy it might just work."

"So you wanna do it?"

"Yeah, let's do it."

"Right on!"

Both Digimon unhuddled and walked back towards TK who was patiently waiting for them after finally composing himself.

"Hey kid," said Gotsumon. "Me and Pumpkinmon have had a little talk about you and we've decided something."

"Decided what?" TK asked curiously.

"We've decided that we'd like to offer you a spot with us?" smiled Pumpkinmon.

"A spot with you?"

"YEAH!"

"What do you mean?"

"It's means that we'll be your friends and we'll take care of you. It's a rotten thing those other digi-destents did, abandoning you and leaving you all alone. We've decided that we should help you."

TK couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You guys wanna be my friends."

"Yeah, we sure do," said both Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon in unison.

A huge smile came across TK's face now and he suddenly pulled both his new friends into a rib-breaking hug.

"OH I'M SO HAPPY!"

"Can't…. breathe…." squeaked Gotsumon.

"Kid, let go!" begged Pumpkinmon. TK released them.

"Sorry, but THANK YOU SO MUCH!" TK was in tears again. But now they were tears of happiness.

"Don't mention it," said Pumpkinmon trying to catch his breath again.

"You guys really want to be my friends? And you promise you won't ever leave me?"

"Promise."

TK beamed. Finally, he felt happy and safe again. There's no better feeling than making new friends and feeling accepted.

…

**Watching from close by**

"An interesting twist," said Pixiemon.

"Indeed," replied Gennai.

"Do you think they can be trusted."

"I'm not sure, they did work for Myotismon after all."

"Who says they don't still do? What if first thing they hand TK straight over into Myotismon's hands?"

"I know you mean. Still, I think we let this play out for a while. TK is safe from Myotismon for now because of the power of effects of the portal."

Pixiemon was confused by this. What did Gennai mean?"

"What effects of the portal?" he asked curiously.

"The digi-gate when it opened created a force barrier around each of the digi-destined. A barrier which protects them from darkness, it was the force that carried the rest of them back into their world. Only TK is the one who's still here. And that barrier is still protecting TK now. It can't be seen but it's definitely still there."

"So Myotismon can't harm him?"

"That's right. Neither him or any other force of darkness. They will be repelled by the power of light."

"How long will the barrier last?"

"I'm not sure. The crest TK holds is the key to that. It's the crests which is the key to the barriers. As long as TK has his crest and it remains active he will be protected."

Pixiemon digested all of what he'd been told. It was a lot to take in and think about.

"How do you know all this Gennai?" asked the little pink digimon.

"How do you know all this Gennai? You seem to know everything about these digi-destined."

Gennai was cute with his answer.

"I just do old friend. I just do."

Realising he wouldn't get a proper answer to his question, Pixiemon didn't pursue it. The pair of them watched as TK and his new friends celebrated underneath the tree.

"Well then, it looks as if young TK is in for an interesting time of things. A difficult time, but an interesting one all the same."

"Indeed."

….

**Back at the tree**

"You guys have made me so happy!"

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon just laughed.

"You're an excitable one aren't yer TK?" remarked Pumpkinmon. TK just beamed.

"Come on guys, let's go get something to eat," suggested Gotsumon.

"Yeah," said Pumpkinmon. "I'm starving. Are you TK?"

"Yeah," the boy replied. His tummy gave a well-timed rumble after he'd spoke.

"Well let's get yer something, partner."

Pumpkinmon winked as he'd said partner. It made TK well up with happiness again. These digimon, they wanted to be his friends. They truly liked and accepted him. All he'd wanted was someone to be with him always. Ever since his parents' divorce and his separation from Matt, TK had had a profound fear of abandonment or the thought of being left behind. The incident with the rest of his digi-destined friends and finally Matt all leaving him here in the digital world had made this fear intensify greatly. Also his fallout with Tokomon which had led him to leave, that had hurt him both visibly and internally too (despite that example being his of own making). Now though, he felt happy again. He had new friends who obviously cared about him. And they'd promised him they'd never leave him. He finally felt better about his predicament.

Gennai and Pixiemon watched the three new friends walked away laughing and chatting happily.

"Good luck TK, you'll need it," said Gennai.

"And when the time comes, you'll be needed to step up and face the darkness again young one," Pixiemon added. "And he may have to do it alone."

"We'll work on that," said Gennai. "Hopefully the other digi-destined and their digimon can return someday. But until then, young TK will need to cope without them."

**Please rate and review. Next chapter either tomorrow or the day after. This story will really get going now, we've done the boring bit. Let's get to the good stuff.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Time for chapter 4. In this chapter TK will undergo a name change, it will be explained why in due course. It's set a few weeks after the last chapter left off. Sorry about any mistakes.**

**Chapter 4**

TK, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were all hiding in a bush and were waiting for something. It was evening time now and the sky was beginning to darken. Night was drawing in and the trio hadn't had any supper yet.

"I'm hungry," complained TK holding his hand over his tummy. "When are we gonna eat?"

"Soon," replied Gotsumon.

"What are we waiting for? TK asked.

"The perfect moment to strike," was the reply from Gotsumon. "We got for the perfect moment when he lets his guard down. Then, and only then do we strike."

About 20 feet away was a Chuumon which was what he talking about. He was sitting by a small campfire and was roasting something. Freshly caught fish. He was completely unaware that the three were watching him from their hiding place.

"That guys is making us our supper TK," said Pumpkinmon mischievously.

TK didn't like scavenging food like this normally. It seemed under-handed, that Chuumon had worked hard to catch his own meal but now he was about to have it stolen away from him. It didn't feel right. However, TK was himself very hungry so this time he was willing to make a rare exception. His appetite was more important than his ethics.

"This is just like those nature shows on the Discovery channel," thought TK aloud.

"What are you talking about TK?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"Back home there's these TV shows were lionesses hunt other animals. They do what we're doing now, hide in bushes and wait to strike."

"What the hell's a lioness?"

"You've never heard of a lioness?"

No, and what's the Discovery channel?"

"Be quiet, both of you," ordered Gotsumon. "Here's our chance."

He spoke because the Chuumon had now taken his fish away from the fire and onto some fresh leaves. The food was ready to be eaten.

"We go on three. One. Two. THREE!"

On three the trio burst out from the hiding place and gave their loudest battle cries. The poor Chuumon was caught completely off guard and jumped out of his skin.

"GET HIM!" shouted Pumpkinmon as the three of them charged forwards.

Instinct taking over, the Chuumon was quickly on his feet and began to run away, leaving all his food behind. In only a matter of seconds he was up and away, screaming in fear. The trio didn't pursue him.

"HAHA, it worked!" whooped Gotsumon.

"Yeah!" laughed Pumpkinmon. "Did you that Chuumon's face? You'd have thought it was a Dark Master chasing him. (Hehe)"

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon high-fived at their success. TK however was a little solemn.

"What's wrong with you?"

"I told you guys, I don't like stealing food other digimon, it's not right."

"Oh get with it TK, we have to do this or we'd all starve. We don't know to fish and you said you don't know either? And we ain't rich either so we can't buy any food either."

"I know but… "

"Come on TK, we told you about this. If you're gonna survive out here then you need to stop being noble. It's tough surviving out here in the digital-world pal. You either got a toughen up or get swallowed up by some big and nasty digimon."

"I guess…."

"Come on, let's forget about that. Let's just eat a newly won supper!"

With that the three friends sat themselves down around the campfire and tucked into the cooked fish. It tasted delicious and TK's thoughts some began drift onto to something else. As they were all enjoying their meal TK continued to think about something else that had been bothering him for a little while now. He'd thought about constantly and finally decided to discuss it with his two new pals.

"Hey guys, can we talk about something?"

"If it's about how scavenging again then no," replied Pumpkinmon in between mouthfuls.

"No ," replied TK. "It's something else. Something very important that I've been thinking about for a while."

"What is it?" asked Gotsumon looking up from his fish.

"Well…. it's…. er…. it's…." TK was nervy and stumbling over his words.

"Just say it TK," said Pumpkinmon.

"I DON'T WANT TO BE CALLED TK ANYMORE!" he burst out.

His two friends looked at each other confused before looking back at TK. They weren't expecting him to say that.

"Why not?" asked Gotsumon eventually.

"I… I… I just don't," said TK with head looking down at the floor. This was the sort of thing he did whenever his mom or Matt were angry with him and were telling him off.

"What's wrong with being called TK?" asked Pumpkinmon. "What's it short for anyway?"

"Takeru," answered TK quietly.

"Well, we'll just call you Takeru then."

"No, I don't want to be called that either," he said.

"Why, what's wrong with it?"

"I don't like that name anymore. That's what everyone calls me back in my world. Now that I'm stuck here in the digital world I want a new name from now on."

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were very confused but went along with it.

"Er… okay," said Gotsumon. "What should we call you from now then?"

"I don't know," replied TK.

"Well think of something. Because until you do we're just gonna call you TK."

With that he and Pumpkinmon went back to eating their supper. TK did the same shortly afterward, lost in thought again.

Eventually when the three had finished Pumpkinmon spoke;

"Man, that really hit the spot," he said rubbing his stomach. "I'm stuffed."

"Me too," said Gotsumon. He then turned towards TK. "Decided on a new name yet?"

"No," answered TK quietly.

"How about Billy?" suggested Pumpkinmon.

"No thanks," said the blonde boy. He was still looking down at his feet and had his little legs pulled up in front of him.

"Maybe Ed?"

"No."

"I got it," said Gotsumon now. "How about Trowa? Do you like that? It's easy to remember, begins with a T and it sounds grown up."

TK looked up. He thought about it a bit and then smiled.

"I like that."

"Trowa? Why that? What does it mean?" Pumpkinmon had never heard of it before.

"Erm, I thought of it now," lied Gotsumon.

"I like Trowa," said TK. "I want to be called that from now on okay?"

"Okay," said Pumpkinmon. "From here on in your name is officially Trowa! How you doin Trowa?"

"Fine," smiled 'Trowa'.

"Okay Trowa and Pumpkinmon, let's go find a place to sleep. It's dark now and I'm tired."

"Okay."

With that the three friends stood up and set off to find somewhere to spend the night. Slowly but surely, TK (or Trowa as he was now to be called) was coming around to the idea of being stuck in the digital world. Too bad his family back home weren't.

**The real world.**

"What am I going to say to our mom and dad? How can I possibly tell them that TK is stuck in the digital world all on his own and I don't know any way to go back and get him?"

"Calm down Matt, you mustn't blame yourself," reassured Gabumon trying make his partner feel better.

"He's right Matt, it's not your fault," said Izzy from beside them. "No doubt they'll be upset but blaming yourself or other people isn't going to help."

The digi-destined and their digimon were all sat on logs waiting for their parents to pick them up. They'd discovered that the digi-gate had brought them straight back to the spot of their summer camp and according to the calendar hanging on the wall it was August 1st, the exact same date when they'd first went to the digital world. Time in the digital world mustn't relate over to the human world in the same patterns.

Using a nearby payphone, each member of the group had taken turns in calling their parents to be asked to be picked up (they'd given some excuse as to why camp had been cancelled). They'd barely had enough money to call everyone they needed to call so each person only had a small time on the phone. No time to explain anything.

The parents would all be along at some point to pick their respective child up. People like Matt's father Hiroaki and Izzy's father Masami had to wait until they finished work before coming.

Calling his father had been the most daunting thing Matt had ever had to do. He didn't know how he was going to tell him about what had happened. He'd lied to his father on the phone, asking him to come pick him AND TK up, not being able to bring himself to tell his father that TK was gone (he wouldn't really have had the time anyway).

Hiroaki had been annoyed about the summer camp's sudden cancellation and being asked to drive all the wait to big his two boys up on the fly but had agreed anyway. He promised to come when he clocked off from work.

"How am I going to explain things when my dad gets here? What can I possibly say when he asks where TK is?"

"Just be strong Matt," advised Sora placing her hand on his shoulder." You need to stay strong, you and your parents, all for TK. Later when we've all got ourselves settled at home we can all meet up again to try and think of way of getting back to the digital world."

"I certaintly hope we can find a way back," said Gomamon now. "This might be home to you guys but us digimon belong back in the digital world. We can't stay here for too long."

Everyone murmured in agreement except who had his head in hands? What was he going to do? He desperately wanted to cry but he wouldn't allow himself, not in front of everyone else. Could he be blamed though? He'd lost his little brother, the person he loved and cared about more than anyone or anything else.

He'd left him all alone in the digital world. He'd promised he'd only be gone a couple of hours but had in fact been gone a week. He'd stayed behind at the restaurant to help Joe but hadn't intended to stay long. He knew TK would have been waiting for him with Tokomon still at the amusement park. But now there was no way he could ever go back to him. And it hurt him so much.

…...

**Later….**

It was dark now and Matt was the only person left waiting, everyone else had been picked up by their parents and been taken home (with their in-training digimon). His father Hiroaki hadn't arrived yet and to be honest, despite feeling cold, Matt was dreading when he would. He'd been thinking about it for hours but still couldn't figure out a way how he was going to tell is father about TK and what had happened.

Gabumon had reverted back into Tsunomon and was loyally by Matt's side. He knew he'd have to keep quiet when Matt's father arrived though. He and the other digimon couldn't let any other humans know the truth about them. It would be too much hassle.

As the stars began to come out and the moon began to shine the temperature began to drop even further. Matt shivered.

"I'm sure your dad won't be much longer Matt," said Tsunomon.

"I'm hoping for him to come any time soon Tsunomon," said Matt. "I'd rather he didn't come at all to be honest. Freezing out here would be a hell of a lot better than having to tell him about what's happened."

Tsunoman sighed. He thought for a little while and then spoke again.

"Just tell him about everything Matt. EVERYTHING. About the digital-world, about digimon, about the digi-gate. I know it will blow his mind but he deserves to know the truth, him and your mom. They should know exactly what's happened with poor TK.

Matt didn't give his response, he just went into that quiet shell of his like he always did when brooding. Tsunomon was used to this though and understood.

Shortly afterwards, a pair of headlights could be seen approaching. Hiroaki was here. Matt watched as his car pulled up and he beebed his horn. Matt picked up Tsunomon and headed towards the car. He opened the and climbed in.

"Hey son," said Hiroaki from the driver's seat. "Sorry I'm late, traffic this time of the evening is chaos. Been stuck in a jam for nearly an hour."

"It's alright Dad," answered Matt quietly.

"Hiroaki looked into the back seat and realised that TK hadn't gotten into the car. Where was he?"

"Where's TK?" he asked. "I was going to take him home."

Matt closed his eyes. He'd been dreading this moment so much but now it was finally here. Hiroaki spoke again though;

"Did your mom come pick him up?" he asked his oldest son.

Matt looked up and without even thinking answered;

"Yes."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, she came and got him earlier."

"Then how come she didn't pick you up?"

"….she offered but I said no. She said she was going to take TK straight to visit Grandma's but I said I'd rather just go home."

"Why didn't you want to go?"

"I just didn't. It's been a long day and I just want to go home. Besides, I'd already called you asking you to come pick me up and didn't have another quarter to call you back. When I went into bushes for a pee TK must have snook away and called Mom asking her to come get him."

Hiroaki just nodded at this. He had been planning to take boy Matt and TK out for something to eat after picking them up, it was very rare he got to spend time with the both of them and wanted to make the most of it whilst he had them both. He was slightly hurt that TK had wanted to go home with his mom instead of going with him and Matt. That led him to ask think about something else. He eventually came out and said it;

"Matt son, listen. You really should try to spend more time with your mom you know. She barely gets to see you and I know she really misses spending time with you. That's why I guess she wanted you to go with her to your Grandma's."

"She can see me anytime she wants Dad. Just today I felt tired after everything that's happened. Now can we just go home?"

Deciding not to push it, Hiroaki just nodded and put his foot down.

As they drove Matt's head continued to spin. He felt awful and cowardly for lying to his father. But he just couldn't bring himself to tell him about TK. Better he think TK was safe with their mom. And as for her, hopefully she wouldn't find out about camp being cancelled.

"What's that thing your holding?" asked Hiroaki as he turned into the street their apartment block was on.

"Oh er…," began Matt nervously trying to think of something. "Er…. it's a gift given to all of us by the camp organiser. A way of saying sorry for camp being cancelled. It's corny I know but I didn't want to just leave it out there on the grass.

"Corny!?" breathed Tsunomon from Matt's lap.

Matt quickly put his hand over Tsunomon's mouth but fortunantely Hiroaki didn't seem to notice.

As they pulled into the apartment parking lot Hiroaki spoke;

"When we get upstairs have something to eat, a shower and then go to bed son. You've had a long day and look exhausted.

"So do you."

"I'm used to it."

However, when they got into the apartment Matt headed straight to his room and locked the door. Hiroaki just smirked, his oldest son was at that age where kids start acting strangely.

In his bedroom, Matt put Tsunomon down and threw himself onto his bed, his head in hands.

"Matt are you okay?" asked the little digimon quietly.

Matt didn't reply. Underneath his hands were very watery eyes that he was trying to conceal. How was possibly going to fix this?

**Hope you liked . May be a little while until the next update, got other stories to write. Please rate and review**.


	5. Chapter 5

**Time for another chapter. Sorry it's taken longer than I said, just had some other stuff to do the last few nights and couldn't find time to write. Alas, it's here now and it's one of the most dramatic chapters yet! **

**Thank you all so much for your reviews, I REALLY appreciate feedback. I'll try to address your criticisms and suggestions, I promise. Please keep reading and reviewing. Forgive any mistakes. Enjoy.**

**Chapter 5**

Trowa (TK's new name) was sitting alone having some private thinking time. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were giving him some space to let his brain gather itself. This was becoming a repetitive habit now for the young boy. Although most of the time he was happy and fine with his new friends there were occasions where he'd feel like he needed to be on his own away from everyone else. This was something Matt often used to do and it had always confused TK, he didn't understand why Matt would just go into these moods. He did now then.

Just thinking about his brother made him angry and upset. Yes, angry. Because the reasons for TK's behaviour and his desire for a new name was routed directly back to his brother and what had happened between them. How could he have abandoned him like that? Said all those nasty things? Called him a "crybaby" and say he didn't want with him anymore. It made TK want to cry, but he didn't. That would be proving 'him' right.

"They all left me, they all never really like me," kept telling himself. "Not even my own brother wanted to be my friend."

Another voiced in the kid's heads spoke up now, a more confident one.

"Who needs him? All he ever did was treat you like a baby anyway. He wouldn't let you stay up late with everyone else and wouldn't me hear what they would all talk about. I've got new friends now called Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon and they seemed to like me just fine. They don't think I'm a crybaby. They don't make me go to bed early. They don't tell me how to dress and wash and how to tie my shoes. All stuff he used to do, stuff he'd make me do because he's my big brother."

TK's thoughts then drifted towards his mom. He missed them both so terribly.

"I miss Mom though. I miss her cooking and how she'd help go to sleep whenever I have a nightmare. I miss how she used to always smile at me and stroke my head. I just miss not being able to see her anymore and have her look after me."

The other voice spoke up again now.

"But all that's stuff for babies TK. And you've just said yourself you're not a baby anymore. Sometimes little kids like you need to stop being little and grow up. That's why Matt and everyone else went away, because you wouldn't grow up and they didn't want to be stuck with a baby."

TK gave this all more thought.

"I want to grow up. I WILL grow up." He'd said all of this aloud now. No one was there to hear him though. He stood up and decided that he'd stick with this attitude. He was determined to grow up and being strong. To prove to everyone who'd left him he wasn't weak like they all thought.

His mind made up, he began walking back to the camp where he and his two friends were staying for the night. It wasn't far away, he was careful never to wander too far whenever he went for this alone periods in case he got lost.

As he walked his minded drifted onto to other thoughts that had been troubling him.

"I wonder how Tokomon's doing?" he thought. "I haven't seen him since our argument. I hope nothing happened to him. I wonder if I'll ever see him again? I hope so."

**Primary Village**

Tokomon lay on top of the toy towers that overlooked the hundreds of growing digi-eggs. The little digimon had come here and spent time with Elecmon caring for newly-born digimon after his fall-out TK. He thought about his human partner all the time, where was he right now? Who was he with? Was he alright? Did he need him? Did he miss him as much as Tokomon missed him?

"Oh TK…." Whimpered the little digimon.

"You're missing him badly aren't you?" said a voice from behind him. It was Elecmon. Tokomon just nodded in response to his question.

"I feel for you kids," said the older digimon settling himself down beside Tokomon now.

"The best thing you can have in life is friends, you shouldn't lose them over a silly argument."

Tokomon just sighed.

"I told you Elecmon, TK started it and he ended it. He told me to go away from.

"Tokomon, are you sure it's all his fault?"

"Well, no…. it's not. But, but….. TK was the one who said he didn't want us to be friends anymore. He'd rather go off with that liar Demi-Devimon, he believed him over me. That really hurt my feelings."

"Friends say things they don't mean when they're upset and having an argument," explained Elecmon. "I'm sure TK didn't mean that he doesn't like you anymore. Of course he does. I remember when I first you two together when you both came here to Primary village for the first time. You two were inseperable. Best pals. I'm sure it would be very easy for you to make up and be friends again."

"I don't know," said Tokomon, still unsure.

"Look kiddo, take my advice. Tomorrow go out and find TK and make up. I'm sure he can't have gone too far from where you last saw him, you'll find him okay if you look hard enough."

"I suppose…" answered Tokomon.

"Sleep on it kiddo and decided what you want to do," Elecmon advised. "I've told you this before but I'll say it again. You're welcome here at Primary Village. Always. TK too."

Tokomon nodded.

**The next day**

Tokomon had taken Elecmon's advice and had left Primary village to search for TK. The little digimon was determined to find his friend and makes things right with him. He should have been the bigger friend in the argument and never have left TK with Dem-Devimon. No doubt he'd have continued telling TK his nasty lies in his absence. Tokomon just hoped with all his heart that TK was smart enough not to fall for them.

Tokomon made his way back to the amusement park and was there by the mid-afternoon. To his dismay however, there was no sign of TK or Demi-Devimon anywhere.

"Oh no, I hope TK is okay," thought Tokomon very worried. "I also hope he hasn't gone far, the digital world's a dangerous place when you're alone because there's no way a snake like Demi-Devimon would ever protect TK."

Tokomon left the site of the amusement and continued to search for TK. He was VERY worried now. He had no idea where TK could have gone and with whom. His first idea was that TK may have gone to look Matt and Gabumon after they had not come back. But how would he have crossed the water? There was no other boat to use.

Maybe he'd gone to the forest which was located nearby? Tokomon decided to search there.

**Several hours later **

Tokomon had made his way to the digi-forest and had been walking around searching for TK for several hours but still hadn't found any sign of him. The little digimon would have been lying had he said that wasn't scared walking through here. There were many digimon that lived in this forest and not all of them were nice. Tokomon felt very vulnerable and was jumping at the slightest noises, afraid that a digimon was sneaking up on him. Oh how he wished he could digivolve. That way he could defend himself if he was attacked. He couldn't though without TK. He still had the digivice and the crest.

Tokomon stopped underneath a tree to rest. It was dark now and the forest was becoming even scarier. He decided he's continue his search tomorrow, though that meant he and TK had to spend another night apart. Poor TK, if he thought this forest was scary then he couldn't imagine how scared TK would have felt if he'd been through here. No Matt or any of the other or him, Tokomon, to take care of him. It only made Tokomon feel sadder. He closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep.

He must have only been half-asleep because it wasn't long before Tokomon began to hear voices. Some other digimon were nearby and there were talking. And laughing. Tokomon opened his eyes and began to listen carefully to work out where the voices where coming from. He eyes quickly scanned the surrounding area but he couldn't see anyone. He stood and began to follow the noise.

"Come on Trowa, you're not serious!?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"No really!" insisted Trowa.

"He really did that?"

"Yeah! He really called Elecmon puffy!"

"HAHAHA!"

Tokomon could hear the voices clearly. One of the ones talking was Pumpkinmon, some called Trowa and at least one other. The more he listened though he realised something;

"That sounds just like TK!"

He began to run towards the voices as fast as he could. He could make out a campfire. It was TK!

"TK, TK! I found you," shouted Tokomon as he ran into the clearing.

"Hey what!?" said Gotsumon

"TOKOMON!" exclaimed TK happily.

Tokomon leapt into TK's arms and the two friends gave each other a big smile and laugh. They were both so happy to be reunited. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon just kept quiet and looked on.

"Tokomon, I'm so happy to see you."

"And I'm happy to see you TK," the little digimon replied with a smile. "I was worried we'd never get to see each other again."

"Where have you been?"

"I went to Primary Village for a little while to help out Elecmon with the baby digimon. What about you?"

"I've been with these guys. Tokomon, say hello to my new friends. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. Say hello guys."

Gotsumon and Pumpkin were still taken aback. They'd never met this little digimon before.

"Er... hi," said Pumpkinmon. Gotsumon just nodded nervously.

"Hello," said Tokomon. He knew these two. They worked for Myotismon. What was TK doing with them!? They'd obviously tricked him like Demi-Devimon had. Tokomon then whispered into TK's ear.

"TK, can we talk alone for a few minutes. I want to talk to you about something very important."

"Er… okay…" TK replied.

He then looked up at his two friends and said.

"Guys, can you give me and Tokomon a few minutes alone please? We need to talk about something."

The pair of them just nodded.

"We'll go get more firewood," declared Gotsumon as he and Pumpkin walked away into the trees. Truthfully, the pair of them were very glad to be away. They didn't like trusting strangers.

"Phew, they're gone now," said Tokomon jumping down onto the floor. "Come on TK, let's get out of here before they come back."

"What do you mean?" asked TK.

"We need to run away. Those guys work for Myostismon."

TK was stunned. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon worked for Myotismon. No way, surely not?

"They don't Tokomon, they're my friends."

"They work Myotismon," Tokomon repeated. "They're two of his servants. They must be taking you straight to him."

"No there not!"

"Yes they are!"

The arguments between the two friends were starting all over again.

"They're my friends Tokomon, my new friends and I like them. They're nice to me, they laugh with me and don't think I'm a crybaby like all the other kids did."

"I've told you TK, what Demi-Devimon said about Matt and the others can't be true. He had to be lying. Where is he anyway?"

"I don't know what happened to Demi-Devimon, he left me. Just like everyone else."

"Then how come you're with them?"

"Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon found me stuck in a tree and helped me. They then asked if I wanted to be my friends and I said yes."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because all the other friends I thought I had think I'm just a crybaby and they all left me. Even you!"

That accusation stung Tokomon deeply. He was on the verge of tears. TK wasn't though, he was just nothing but anger.

"The way I remember it YOU told ME to leave. I didn't want to but you made me."

"Only because you took a cheap shot at Demi-Devimon and wouldn't apologise.

"All because he's trouble-maker who was tricking you. He probably works for Myotismon, just liked those two."

"Don't saying that. I won't have you say nasty things about my new friends Tokomon."

"TK, please. Believe me. I'M your friend and I would never lie to you. We're digi-partners after all, right?"

"Well yes and no."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Yes were partners but no because I don't want to be a digi-destined anymore. I'm NOT a digi-destined anymore, that's how I see it."

"You… what?"

"You heard me Tokomon, I decided a little while ago that I don't want to be a digi-destined anymore, I don't want to be part of that group. Not when everyone else in it treated me the way they did."

"TK, you're not serious?"

"I am serious, and to prove it." TK conceded to take the crest of Hope from around his neck and the digivice out of his pocket. He then cast them onto the floor at Tokomon's feet.

"TK….." breathed Tokomon, he was truly speechless. But TK still had more to say.

"That's another thing. TK isn't my name anymore. I've decided I want a new one. From now on my name's Trowa."

The dumped Digivice was beeping. Both Tokomon and Trowa looked down at it. Tokomon then began to glow.

"TOKOMON DIGIVOLVE TOO….. PATAMON!"

Patamon settled himself down. It felt good to be in this form again but his mind was racing from other things. TK had knocked the wind out of his sails with what he'd told him.

"Patamon?" asked Trowa now, shocked at seeing the digimon for the first time in a long time.

"TK, please. Don't be like this."

Trowa was brought back to their argument by these words.

"I'm sorry Patamon, but that's how I feel. You can either like it or hate because I'm not changing it. Now you have two choices. You can either stay with me, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon or you can leave again. It's up to you. But if you choose the first option then you need to apologise and promise you won't say bad things about them again."

"I can't do that TK," said Patamon, ignoring Trowa/TK's earlier request.

"Then I think we need to go our separate ways then, for good." TK spoke with a lot of conviction in his normally sweet voice. His answer was definitive.

"Fine," said Patamon. "But say I didn't warn you TK. I told you about Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon and who they really are. They'll trick you and take you to Myotismon. And there's no guarantee that any of the others would be able to save you.

"I wouldn't want to be saved by any of the others," Trowa retorted. "Who needs them?"

There was then an awkward silence between the pair of them for a while. Was this really how it was going to end for them. These two once great friends, after everything was their relationship/partnership going to end on such a bad note. It seemed so.

The silence was interrupted as Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon both returned, each with arms full of fire wood.

"Oh, have you guys finished talking yet?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"Yes," answered Trowa quickly. He and Patamon gave each other one final stare before the little digimon turned and began to walk away, his ear-like wings down by his sides in sadness.

"HERE, TAKE THESE WITH YOU!" shouted TK, tears starting to fall down his cheeks. He kicked his dropped crest and digivice in Patamon's direction. Patamon scooped the crest around his neck and grabbed the digivice with mouth. He then continued to walk away, tears coming down also. Eventually he passed a bush and was out of sight?"

Er… what happened Trowa?" asked Gotsumon awkwardly.

Trowa didn't answer him right. He'd turned his back and didn't turn around. He was trying to hide his tears.

"You… guys… don't have to worry about him… anymore," he managed. "He's gone and…. and he won't ever bother us again."

Pumpkinmon just walked over to the little boy's should and put a hand on it.

"It's okay buddy, we understand. Just let it out."

On request Trowa let it all out. He bawled out in sadness and let his tears fall.

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon both quietly consoled him and allowed himself to cry himself out. After about 10 minutes he'd done just that, and surprisingly, he soon fell to sleep.

"I guess he's had a long day," remarked Pumpkinmon.

"Yeah, he has," replied Gotsumon. "Like I told you when we first agreed to this Pumpkinmon, we got to look after this kid. Right now he may be small, but one day he'll big. And he'll remember us and what we did for him."

Pumpkinmon nodded in agreement. He then asked a question he still wanted answering.

"What do you think happened back there with flopsy?"

"I think that was little Trowa's partner from the digi-destined. He obviously wanted the kid to go with him and he said no, because he wants to stay with us."

"What a sweet kid."

They both looked down at the sleeping Trowa. He was fast asleep.

"Come on, let's get him closer the fire. He deserves good night's rest after everything he's been through."

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. A nice long one I thought I'd make it in apologies for taking a little while. Next chapter we go back to the real world and catch up with the rest of the digi-destined (and yes, Tai will return. His absence is due to him going back to the real world in episode 20, this fic is set during episode 22 and beyond). Next chapter could be tomorrow, if not then the day after. Until then, thanks for reading.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter six time. Hope you enjoyed the last chapter. For now it's **time** to go back to the real world and see what's happening. Please rate and review. Cheers. **

**Chapter 6**

**Matt and his father's Apartment**

Matt had a few sleepless nights since returning to the digital world. He had still not told his father (or his mother) about what had happened with TK. His father thought his younger son was back with his mother and still thought TK and Matt were still off at summer camp. Matt and TK's mom and dad rarely ever spoke nowadays so it why was the two had not found the truth out yet. But Matt didn't know how much longer he could avoid it for; he'd have to tell them the harsh truth eventually.

He had been on the phone with Tai almost every night since returning. He and Koramon had returned to the normal world a few weeks before everyone else, it had happened during the final battle with Etehmon.

"Tai, what I am going to do? How can I possibly tell my parents about TK. About how I left him, how I failed him. (Tai had been filled in about what had happened in his absence in the digital world).

"You're right Matt, you can't avoid it forever," explained Tai trying to calm his friend down. "One day when you're Mom thinks that summer camp has ended she's going to wonder why TK hasn't come home? She'll no doubt call you and your dad to ask and your dad will realise that TK isn't with her like you told him."

"I know it's just, it'll break their hearts to know what's happened to him Tai. But I understand. I'll tell my dad tonight and then I'll tell my mom."

"That's right thing to do pal," said Tai trying to encourage Matt.

"Okay, I'm going to take a shower and then go to bed. I'll call you tomorrow if I get the chance."

"Okay, goodnight.

"Night."

With that Matt put the phone down and walked over to couch. Upon reaching it he just collapsed onto it, crashing down besides Tsunomon who watching TV.

"So you're going to tell your dad about everything?" asked the digimon.

"Yeah Tsunomon, I've got not choice. I'm not sure if he'll understand but he has to know, him and my mom. I can't have them thinking TK's okay when he might not be."

"I'll support you Matt, don't worry," reassured Matt. The blonde gave his digimon pat on the head. The both of them proceeded to watch TV. Matt though wasn't really concentrating on the sitcom that was being shown, his mind was on still TK and his parents.

His father usually worked nights like he was tonight so Matt had the apartment to himself. This allowed Tsunomon to bounce around freely. He couldn't decide how best to do this, until the morning or stay up late, wait for his dad to come home and explain in it too him then. He decided on the latter option, there was no way he was going to get any sleep tonight anyway.

**Fuji TV station**

Hiroaki was getting a cup of coffee from the machine. He hated working these night shifts but always took them anyway whenever they were offered. Being the workaholic he was, he looked for any excuse to be here at the station in case a breaking news story happened. He opened his wallet to grab a quarter and had a quick glance at the family photo he still had tucked in there. It was him, his ex-wife Nancy and their two boys when they were younger. All of them smiling and happy. It was taken on a family vacation to Europe, if he remembered right it was shortly after returning from this vacation that the problems between him and Nancy first started. He didn't like thinking about it much though, too many painful memories.

He focused on the face of his youngest son. He was so little and cute, only a toddler when this photo had been taken. It made him feel even sadder when he remembered that he barely got to see TK anymore since the divorce. He'd gone to live with Nancy in another part of the city whilst Matt had stayed with him. He loved both his boys very much but it heart-breaking for him to only get to see one of them and not the other.

He wanted TK to come over and visit him and Matt more often, maybe stay a couple of nights. Nancy surely wouldn't have a problem with this, she'd probably want the same thing just with Matt going to see her. She missed their eldest boy just as much as he missed their youngest, this Hiroaki knew for sure.

Nancy, it had been so strange how their relationship just seemed to have fallen apart. One minute they were a very happy couple with good careers and two lovely sons. Then, over the space of just few months, their bickering over what seemed like small things like; working hours, smoking habits, whether or not they should move and whether or not Nancy's boss at her work was trying start something with her (Hiroaki had seen the bastard make a pass at his wife at a Christmas party). All these things added up and before anyone knew it they were driven to separation and eventually divorce.

When it came to deciding custody of the Matt and TK they both knew the boys would have to be separated. Sole custody of them both wasn't a realistic option for either of Hiroaki or Nancy. Eventually Matt told them that he wanted to stay with his father whilst TK should go with their mother. It made sense, Matt was a little older and could look after himself when Hiroaki was at work. TK though was still little and needed his mother. With that Nancy packed up and moved away to an apartment across the city, taking little TK with her. The divorce and separation had broken all four members of the family's hearts.

And that brought to them the situation they were in now. TK occasionally came to visit but not as often as Hiroaki would had liked. Matt had occasionally gone to see his mother but his visits there were even less frequent. Hiroaki couldn't even remember exactly when Matt had last gone to see his mom, it must have been well over a year. He tried to encourage Matt to go over and see her but each time it was discussed his eldest son just brushed it off or avoided giving an answer. It made Hiroaki sad to think that Matt didn't want to see his mother, he knew Matt was a tough kid who tried to act like a grown up but every kid needs a mom.

His relationship with Nancy since the divorce had just been just one of awkwardness. They rarely spoke to or saw each other and when they did it was only discuss the boys' visits (and as previously stated, those were a rare commodity nowadays). He and Nancy weren't angry with each other at all though, their divorce had been an amicable one. There was just an uncomfortable feeling between both of them that was hard to explain. It was difficult for each of them to know what to say when talking to each other, like they both wanted to come out with something but didn't have the courage to do so.

In the process of thinking everything over Hiroaki had returned to his desk with his coffee. Drinking the last drops, he made a decision. He was going to call Nancy next week when he had time off to arrange for TK to come visit. He just hoped TK would want too.

**Later….**

It was the early hours of the morning when Hiroaki opened the front door of his apartment. He expected everything to be quiet and for Matt to be in bed fast asleep. That wasn't the site he was greeted with though. The TV was and Matt was lying on the couch, either alsleep or just dozing.

"Matt, son," whispered Hiroaki nudging his son on the shoulder..

"What are you doing? Why aren't you in bed?"

Matt rubbed his eyes. He must have dozed after the TV had become the usual late crap. He tried to gather his thoughts before speaking. His father meanwhile, had walked around in front of him and had turned the TV off.

"Come on son, bed." Hiroaki spoke with a lot of authority his voice.

"Wait Dad," said Matt finally gathering himself. "I need to talk to you about something. Something important."

"Did you break anything?" asked Hiroaki suspiciously.

"What? No."

"Then it can wait until the morning then Matt. I'm tired and by the looks of you and the fact you should have gone to bed hours ago, you need to sleep."

"But Dad…"

"Now," ordered Hiroaki.

Realising that there was no point in arguing. His father when he made up his mind was one of the most stubborn people in the world (something Nancy knew only too well) so he'd have to tell him in the morning. Standing up, Matt began to walk towards his room. Before he reached the door though he realised something. He'd left Tsunomon on the couch. Turning around, he walked back towards the couch, scooped a relieved Tsunomon up into his arms and walked back towards his room.

"Night Dad," he yawned as he entered through the door.

"Night Matt," replied Hiroaki. He'd watched as Matt had come back for that stuffed Toy. I though Matt said he didn't even like it?

"Oh well, I guess he's not as grown up as he thinks," is what Hiroaki thought with a yawn. He made his way towards his own room to go to sleep himself.

…

**Morning**

Hiroaki awoke the next morning to the smell of frying eggs and bacon. Matt must have been in the kitchen cooking breakfast. Throwing a sweater on he made his way out of his room.

"Morning son," he said as saw Matt standing at the kitchen counter.

"Morning dad," replied Matt quietly. He tipped an egg and some stripes of bacon onto a plate and passed it to his father.

"Thanks," said a grateful Hiroaki. He began to eat as he picked up his local newspaper which had been delivered and Matt had placed on the table. Hiroaki read the front page and then skipped straight to the back to read the sport. He couldn't bear to read pages 2, 3 or 4. This was because these were likely to be the pages where Nancy's articles would be.

"Er... Dad, we need to talk," said Matt nervously.

"Is this what you mentioned last night?"

"Yes."

"Well what is it?"

"It's…. it's about TK."

"Speaking of TK, there's something I want to tell you too Matt."

"What?"

"I want TK to come here soon to visit us and stay for a few days. It'll probably be next week when I have time off. I was going to call your mom to arrange it later."

Matt dropped his head. Oh God, how was he going to do this now? It had just been made a whole lot more daunting.

"Are you okay?" asked Hiroaki now. He noticed that Matt wasn't happy.

"Dad, the thing I need to talk to you about. It's about TK."

"What is it?"

"Dad… please forgive me."

"What is it Matt!? What about TK!?" Hiroaki was concerned now.

"Dad, TK won't be able to come here."

"Why not?"

"Because… because…"

"SAT IT MATT! What's wrong with TK!"

"HE'S NOT WITH MOM! HE'S STIL IN THE DIGITAL WORLD!" Matt burst out.

Hiroaki was left flabbergasted. TK wasn't with Nancy? The digital world? What was that?

"Matt, tell me. Where is TK. What's happened with him."

"TK didn't go back to Mom's Dad. She didn't come pick him up at camp like I said. She doesn't even know camp was cancelled."

"Then…. where's TK?"

"TK's in the digital world dad. Let me explain everything to you. EVERYTHING. It will be very hard for you to understand but you have to believe me. Tsunomon, come here."

The in-training digimon bounced out of Matt's bedroom and onto the kitchen counter. Hiroaki was speechless at what he'd just witnessed.

"Let me explain Dad."

Over the next hour, Matt told Hiroaki everything there was to tell. About the digital world, digimon and the group's adventure. Hiroaki just listened intently. When it came to explaining about how he'd left TK and Tokomon at the amusement and never gone back to him Matt broke down, unable to continue.

"Okay son, you've said enough," said Hiroaki speaking for the first time in a while.

"Dad, Dad I'm so sorry," stammered Matt.

"It's okay son."

"You believe me, right?"

"Yes Matt, I believe you about everything."

He stood up of his chair and walked around the counter. He wanted to give his eldest son a hug but he knew Matt was too macho for that. He instead put a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Look Matt, here's what I want you to do. Go to your room and go back to sleep. You need a long rest after everything you've been through. You took Tsunomon."

Both Matt and Tsunomon were both shocked that Hiroaki had addressed him directly. Matt quickly asked a question though.

"What are you going to do Dad?"

Hiroaki sighed before answering.

"I'm going to call your mom Matt and explain everything to her. She needs to know all of this too, especially about what's happened with TK. She'll probably end up coming over to see you herself but I want you to have some rest before she does."

Matt just nodded. If explaining to his dad had been hard, explain it to his mom would be even harder. She wasn't as laid back or understanding.

"Dad, I'm so sorry about what's happened. I'd give anything to be able to go back to digital world and help TK."

"I know you would son. I know you love your little brother more than anything. Now go to sleep and let me try to wrap my head around this."

**Hope you liked. Next chapter likely tomorrow. Until then, take it easy. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi guys, chapter 7. Before we begin I will explain some things. In Digimon Adventure, time passes differently. A long period in the digital world is a very short time in the real world. That is a VERY aspect of this story, that fact will play a key part in how we go with this.**

**We'll keep swapping back from TK in the digital world and everybody else in the real world to make sure you understand everything. I try to write my stories so you feel like as you're reading you could picture atching this on TV, like it was an actual episode. That's the best way to write a fanfic in my opinion.**

**Okay, let's go. Forgive any spelling mistakes.**

**A long time later….. **

Down on the beach on the sea shore stood a log cabin made of earth wood. It was home to three great friends, two digimon and one human who'd all known each other for a long time now. They'd lived together, laughed together, changed and grown together. Their names were Gotsumon, Pumpkinmon and Trowa. They'd been together for 7 years. That's right, SEVEN whole years.

Out on the water was a small boat with Pumpkinmon and Trowa on it, each of them with fishing rods. In the period these three friends had been together they all changed in several ways. Pumpkinmon still looked relatively the same in terms of appearance but he was now less mischievous and also more calm and wise. Before meeting Trowa he and his friend Gotsumon had been to rogue troublemakers, only interested in having joking and having fun (usually at someone else's expense).

Trowa (or TK as he as truly called) had changed too. He'd changed a lot. He wasn't a crying little boy who needed his big brother or mommy to coddle him anymore. No, he'd grown up (he was now 15). He used to be cute and little, now that he as older he was handsome and lean. He was lot taller and had a sleek, athletic build. Although still in his mid-teens, TK was very attractive on the eye. He certainly had the looks to rival his big brother's in terms of who girls would like better. TK (or Trowa) hadn't seen a girl in years though. Or any other humans. He'd spend all his time in the digital world, with nobody but digimon for company. But that was something that didn't bother him much anymore. He was used to it now. In fact, he was happy here in the digital world. Content with his life's situation in fact.

In the years that had passed Trowa had changed mentally too. He used to be a bubbly, energetic, highly emotional boy. Now he was a calm, gentle, well-collected teen. His personality had many different traits to it. He was gentle, sweet-natured and well-collected usually. He was also witty and intelligent, a very likeable person. "Well-schooled" would be the correct phrase to describe him. Growing up the digital world meant he had to be if he wanted to look after himself and survive.

There was another side to this young man though. A darker side. When the situation called for it he could display a violent, hair-trigger temper which would frighten the average person. It wasn't often that this side of him reached the surface, but when it did it was a disturbing site.

Also, Trowa had a huge sense of pride which would occasionally get him into unnecessary trouble. Whenever dangerous situation arose he would refuse to run away from it. In attempt to prove his bravery he would always never run away from the danger, instead he would always insist on facing whatever it was confronting him, no matter what the risk. It was a very admirable way of thinking, but this attitude had also meant he'd had a couple of close scares growing up.

He was like this due a jibe that had been made about him when he was still a little boy. A "crybaby" he was labelled by somebody he still didn't like thinking about. Ever since he'd been instilled with an unshakeable determination to prove that person wrong.

They'd lived in this particular hut for several years now. Tired of constantly moving around and sleeping around campfire, the trio of friends had unanimously agreed that they needed to find a place to live and stay there. As a young, growing boy, Trowa needed stability. A place he could call home no that he'd lost his real one. They'd found this old hut abandoned on the beach. It was the perfect place for the three of them settle down. It was large, out of the way and comfortable (once it had been cleaned out and furniture had been 'added' (more like stolen from other places and brought here).

Nearly a full- seven years they'd lived here now. Seven years Trowa had been here in the digital world with no other humans to interact with. It had truly flown by. All three friends had grown up, they weren't boisterous young 'uns anymore. They were all older, wiser, more experienced. They'd been through so much. Gotsumon, Pumpkinmon and Trowa, they were a family. An an unorthodox family, but still a family.

Anyway, back on the boat there still hadn't been any bites on the rods. Pumpkinmon and Trowa were dozing in the afternoon sun; it had been a slow but peaceful day. Gotsumon was back in the wooden hut they all lived in. Opening his eyes, Pumpkinmon looked over at a dozing Trowa and asked;

"Caught anything yet?"

Trowa grunted in response, not even opening his eyes.

Pumpkinmon sat up and grabbed his fishing rod. He hadn't had any bites either. Pumpkinmon thought back to when he and Trowa first learned how to fish, man was that a classic memory of their adventures.

The two of them along with Gotsumon had found this old boat washed up outside the cabin one day. Trowa had came up with the idea of using to catch fish of their own. He'd long been nagging his two friends about how unhappy he was about them stealing things of other digimon, whether it be food, furniture of supplies. Finally giving in to his repeated requests about they should do things "the right way", they agreed to learn how to get things for themselves.

Making up some fishing rods from tree wood and catching some small worms, they went out onto the water to try it out. That was where this story became memorable. Barely 10 minutes into the activity the boat capsided and TK fell into the water. Unable to swim, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon had to jumped into the water to rescue him. TK turned out to be fine, just shaken and embarrassed. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon hadn't been able to stop laughing.

Back in present time Pumpkinmon smiled as he reminisced. That as just one classic story the friends had experienced in their time together. Trowa had got himself into scrapes over the years, sometimes it was amusing and sometimes it was worrying. But he here was, now an older, handsome and friendly young man. The two digimon had done a great job of raising him up.

Pumpkinmon pulled his rod back onto the boat, he'd long since giving up waiting for a fish bite. Time to head back to the cabin, there was enough fish in the cupboards to last them for tonight anyway.

"Tro, let's go back. We're not gonna get anything now and I'm hungry. We'll get Gotsumon to start supper."

Trowa opened his eyes, sat up and yawned. His crystal blue eyes he inherited from his real mom only added to his good looks.

After he finished yawning he opened his mouth and spoke;

"It's been a slow day you're right, let's go back."

Trowa's voiced had changed over the years too. Another natural change had come with age, his voice had broken and wasn't child-like anymore. That said, it was still sounded gentle and soft.

"I'm hungry too," he said now. "Let's get home and eat."

"Right away Tro," said Pumpkinmon.

They each picked up the paddles and began their way back home.

**The real world**

Matt sat in his bedroom with Tsunomon. He was going to meet up with all the other digi-destineds later today to discuss about what they should do now. How would they go forward? How would they get back to the digital world was the more precise question.

"What time are we meeting the others in the park again Matt?" asked Tsnumon.

"12pm," answered the blonde. He looked at his watch, it was 11am now. He still had an hour but the park was a bit of a walk away. He needed to get going soon.

The week since they'd all returned back in the real world had been very chaotic one indeed. BOTH his parents where now up to speed with what had happened, but it hadn't been easy explaining to them. First off he'd told his dad who of course had to also inform his mom. The conversation with her had been…. unforgettable.

**Flashback**

(Ring ring, ring ring)

"Hello?" answered the lady on the other line.

"Hello, Nancy? It's me."

"Oh…. Hirokai." Nancy hadn't been expecting her ex-husband to suddenly call here out of the blue. What could this be about she wondered.

"Yes," he calmly. He was trying his best to compose himself. He was brain was still spinning from his son had just told him.

"Oh... okay," said Nancy now. "Is there something you want to talk about?"

"Yes Nancy, there is. Something important."

"Is it about the boys? Are they okay at summer camp?"

"Yes Nancy, it's about the boys. Look, what I'm about to tell you is a very difficult thing for me to say so…."

"What's wrong?" her tone one of concern.

"They boys aren't summer camp," he told her.

"There not at summer camp!? Well, where are they?"

"Matt's here with me."

"Well where's TK, is he there too? Why have they come home early? Are they okay."

"Look, Nancy…." he broke off. This was very awkward and painful for him.

"Hiroaki, what is it!? What's happened with Matt and TK? Tell me!" She desperately wanted to know what it was now. She'd never heard he ex-husband talk to her like this before. She knew he was struggling to get his words out.

"Look Nancy, where are you?"

"I'm at home, why?"

"I need you to come here okay, right now."

"Come there?" she asked bewildered. What was going on here? Why had happened to cause Hiroaki to act like this?

"Yes Nancy, come here. Right now. We need to talk in person. You need to talk to Matt too. What it is you're going to hear can't be said over the phone."

"But….

"LOOK!" he said raising his voice a little. Realising how rude that had been he quickly stopped and lowered his tone again. He didn't want to argue with her, not at a time like this.

"Look Nancy, it's about the boys. We need to talk about Matt and TK and we can't do it over the phone, it's that important. Please, just come here so we can talk."

There was silence for a few seconds before she answered.

"Okay," she said softly. "I'm on my way. I'll be there as quickly as I can."

"Okay," Hiroaki said back. They bade each other goodbye and then both hung up the phone.

**A little later**

Nancy arrived at the apartment a little over an hour later. It was difficult for here, she hadn't been near this apartment since she'd moved out after the divorce. Taking the elevator up to the where the apartment was located brought back a lot of memories of memories for her from the decade she'd lived here with Hiroaki. She couldn't help but wonder about what the apartment looked like now, had it been redecorated since she and TK had left?

Reaching the door, she realised the old door number plaque as still the same. Her hand shook a little as she reached up and rang the doorbell. Doing this felt strange after she'd formerly opened this very door with a key for so long.

Hiroaki quickly answered and opened the door. They were now face to face. She immediately noticed the large bags under his eyes, he mustn't have had any sleep.

"Hi," he said quietly.

"Hi," she said back.

The usual awkwardness that existed between them was of course present.

"Come in," he said eventually. He led her inside and Nancy nervously followed him.

He led her into the living area and she looked around the apartment. It still looked pretty much the same as she remembered, there had been no major changes.

She did notice a lot of clothes hanging around (both Hiroaki's and Matt's) but it was the room wasn't overly messy by any means. That said, she'd never have allowed either her ex-husband or her sons to leave their clothes spread around like that if she still lived here, she was very serious about tidiness.

"You want me to take your coat?" Hiroaki asked turning back to look at her.

"Oh err…" Nancy was caught off guard. Hiroaki knew what she'd been doing but didn't mind.

"Yes, thank you," she answered eventually.

She took her coat off and handed it to him. He took it back to the hall and hung it up. He then walked back towards her.

"Sit down," he said to her. "I'll make us some coffee."

She nodded and sat herself down at the kitchen table. Hiroaki took two cups out of the cupboard and began to boil the kettle. He made them their coffees in silence as Nancy continued to look around her former home.

Hiroaki remembered how his ex-wife took her coffee (plenty of milk and no sugar). When he'd finished making it he walked around and handed it to her.

"Thank you," she said softly taking it from him. She took a sip and then smiled to herself.

"He remembers," she thought.

She turned towards a more serious thoughts though.

"Okay Hiroaki, what's this about? What's wrong with the boys? Where are they?"

Hiroaki's throat went very dry so he drank some of his own coffee. When he'd finished he spoke slowly.

"Matt's in his room resting," he told her.

"And TK?"

"That's what I need to talk to you about."

Nancy was confused. What was wrong with TK.

"What's wrong with TK? Is he okay?"

Hiroaki sighed.

"Look Nancy, this won't be easy for me to tell you but…."

He sighed again.

"TK isn't here," he told her.

"Well, where is he then? Still at camp?"

"No, he's not."

"Well, where then?"

"Nancy, I don't know where he is. Or who he's with. Matt came home from camp without him."

Nancy's jaw dropped.

"You mean, he's…. missing?"

"Yes," said Hiroaki nodding. "Look, Matt knows more about it than me. He's going to have to explain it all to you like he did to me."

He put his coffee down and walked towards Matt's bedroom door. She watched as he stook his head inside and said something;

"Matt son, wake up."

"Dad?" said Matt groggily. He'd finally managed to nod off but was now being re-awoken.

"Son, get up and come out here."

Matt nodded. He got out of bed and followed his father into the kitchen. The site that met him was one that truly shocked him.

Sitting at the dining room table looking at him was with mom. He couldn't believe his eyes for a second, she was really there, here in the apartment. The last she'd been here was before she and his dad had divorced. But here she was. His dad had said he was going to call her, he'd obviously told her to come.

"Hello Matt," she said managing a slight smile. Her eldest son was so grown up, was no taller than her and was so handsome.

"Hi mom," he replied quietly. He looked from her to his father.

"Matt son, I think you know what I want you to do," said Hiroaki.

Then it all dawned on Matt again. He now needed to explain everything to her like he had his father. This wasn't going to be easy.

"Okay mom," said Matt walking towards the table and sitting down opposite her. He looked into her eyes (which were identical to his) but quickly lowered his head.

"Look Matt please," she moved her hand across the table to cover he sons.

Matt flinched slightly at her touch but didn't pull away.

"Please, where's your brother? What's happened to him? Is he alright? Please tell me."

Matt looked up again, his eyes watering slightly but he didn't care.

"Mom…. TK…. he's…. he's…. gone."

Nancy's eyes began to water too now.

"Gone... where?" she stammered.

Matt shook his head.

"Mom…. Promise me you'll believe what I'm about to tell you.

"Matt…"

"Promise me mom. I've already told Dad and he believes me. I need to know you'll believe me too."

Nancy swallowed and then answered.

"I promise," she said.

"Okay," said Matt. "Please listen and don't speak until I've finished. You need to every part of this."

And he was, telling her EVERYTHING. Telling every he'd previously told Hiroaki, about Digimon, the digital world, the adventure and what had now happened with TK. When Tsunomon had emerged from the bedroom and bounded over to the table Nancy had screamed. Hiroaki and Matt had quickly calmed her down and Tsunomon proceeded to introduce himself.

"Tsnunomon mam," he said. "I'm a digimon and I'm Matt's digi-partner."

She just nodded, still frightened. Eventually though she'd wrapped her head around it and refocused on Matt' story and about TK.

"And I didn't get the chance to go back for him," Matt explained as both his parents listened intently. "A giant light pulled me and Tsunomon through it and then we found ourselves back in this world. I know TK's still in the digital world but I don't know how any of us can get back there."

"So… so… TK, my little TK, he's all alone in this… digital world with all these… digimon?"

"Yes," Matt just about managed to answer. He dropped his head again. Nancy couldn't hold it together anymore.

"OH MY GOD!" she bawled bringing her hands up to her mouth. "MY LITTLE BABY IS LOST IN A STRANGE PLACE WITH NO ONE TO TAKE CARE OF HIM! NO ONE TO HELP HIM AND NO ONE TO BRING HIM BACK! HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN!?"

Hiroaki quickly made his way over to her and stood up from her chair and lashed herself into his arms. He consoled her as she sobbed and sobbed.

The three did not speak for some time, the only sounds being Nancy's sobs. Eventually when she'd eventually managed to mostly calm down Matt spoke;

"Mom, Dad?" he said.

Hiroaki and Nancy let go of each other and turned towards their son. He was now crying too.

"Mom, Dad, I promise you both. I'm going to bring TK back. I'm going to find away back to the digital world and I'm going to find him. Find him and bring him home. I don't care what I have to do, I'll find a way."

Nancy walked away from her husband and threw her arms around Matt. He returned her embrace.

….

**Back in the digital world**

Trowa and Pumpkinmon entered their home through the back door which faced the shore and took their shoes off.

"Is that you guys?" called Gotsumon from the kitchen.

"Yeah," they both answered in unison.

"Catch anything?"

"No," answered Trowa. "No a single fish. Frustrating as hell. We've got enough for tonight so we'll just have to try again tomorrow."

"You cooking something Gotsumon?" asked Pumpkinmon sniffing.

"Yeah, dinner," replied Gotsumon bluntly.

"Great!" replied Trowa. "We're starving. Is it ready?"

"Nearly, bur before you eat Tro you have a visitor. Go deal with him."

"A visitor?" asked Trowa curiously. "Who is it?"

"It's hat old guy," explained Gotsumon. "He came a little while ago asking for you. Wants to talk to you about something important he said. I asked him what it was but he wouldn't say. I just told him you and Pumpkinmon were out fishing so he said he'd wait out front until you got back. Go deal with him would you?"

"Okay," said TK, his tone now an annoyed one. He knew who his visitor must be and honestly couldn't be bothered dealing with this. He walked out of the front door and quickly spotted his visitor. It was exactly who he was expecting.

"What do you want Gennai?" he demanded.

"Nice to you too again young one," Gennai answered with a wry smile.

**We'll leave this chapter right here eh? Nice cliff-hanger. A real load to take in there wasn't it? So much happened. Yes, TK is now 15 but all the other digi-destineds are still 14 as they were in the anime. 7 years have passed in the digital world in between this chapter and the last one but only one week as has passed in the real world. They mentioned in the anime that the time periods between worlds were different so for the sake of this story, I've made it one year to every day.**

**TK now looks and sounds the same as he did in 02 when he got older, so just picture him like he was then. I'll describe what outfit and his clothes now are though in the next chapter.**

**We will continue to hear more of the events that have happened to TK in the long period he's been in the digital world as the story goes on. We'll also bring the other characters back in (I don't think they'll be anyone from 02 coming in for anyone who's wondering, this story is very much set during Digimon Adventure). **

**Next chapter either tomorrow or the day after. Please rate and review, would be highly appreciated. Thanks to everyone who already has. Hope you're enjoying. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Time for chapter 8. The last chapter was so full and emotional it will be hard to top I know. But here's another chapter full of goings on, remember that something is slowly building here. The pay off with be great, trust me. I will continue on with character growth and development. Please forgive any spelling mistakes, there was loads in the last chapter I know. I'll try to improve on it, promise!**

**Here we go!**

Trowa walked towards the gate towards his visitor. He stopped about 10 feet in front of him. He looked the digital world's guardian up and down, sizing him up. Gennai had always looked exactly the same every time he'd met him. Being digital he never aged. He then spoke;

"Gennai." That was all he said with a short nod.

"Takeru," replied Gennai with a warm smile. "It's good to see you again."

Trowa paused for a few seconds before replying.

"Do you still insist on calling me that?" he asked.

"Yes I do," answered Gennai. "I know you have those two friends of yours call you by something different but that's not your true name and it never will be. Your real name is Takeru and that is always what I will refer to you by."

Trowa didn't respond to that, he couldn't be bothered arguing about some trivial. There was a little silence before he eventually spoke again.

"It's been a little while hasn't it?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

"A little while puts it lightly my boy, in fact it's been exactly 2 years, 3 months since we saw each other."

Trowa gave a small smile.

"You have a great memory, don't you?"

"Indeed I do," the digi-guardian replied.

There was another awkward silence between them. There was obvious tension between the two. The difference here was that one of the two people was willing to break it.

"Let's just forget all the dumb pleasantries Gennai, let's just get to it. Why are you here? What do you want?"

TK wasn't in the mood to mess around, he was tired and hungry. He wanted to get this over with and then go back inside to his meal.

"Takeru, I expected better manners from you," said Gennai bluntly. TK just scoffed.

"What are you, my Grandma or something? Look Gennai, I'm starving and I know that whatever the reason is that you're here it's not going to be good news. So forgive me not being in the best of moods."

Gennai then just laughed himself. TK raised his eyebrows to this.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"Nothing really my boy, it's just…. you've changed so much from when you first came to the digital world. You're certainly not that timid little kid anymore."

TK just sighed.

"Look Gennai seriously, what is it really? What's happened now?" TK's voice was calmer and gentler now. He really just wanted answer now.

Knowing it was time to get serious, Gennai proceeded to tell TK why it was he'd come to see him.

"Takeru, there's been developments."

"Developments? What do you mean?"

"Myotismon, he's preparing to make a move."

"Why, what is it he's planning to do now?"

"Brace yourself for this Takeru."

He gave TK a moment to ready himself. The blonde teen just nodded his head lightly (he was honestly struggling to maintain his interest now).

"We think Myotismon may have found a way to open the digi-gate up. I believe he's preparing his army of dark digimon to attack the human world."

Trowa's jaw dropped. That was something he hadn't been expecting to hear alright. He was definitely interested now.

"He can open the portal? How? I thought you said that it was closed forever?"

"I thought it was Takeru, I truly did."

"So what's changed? How can Myotismon suddenly open the portal up?"

"That I don't know. We just know what it is he's planning to do, not how he's going to do it. A 'source' told us."

Trowa stopped and thought for a minute, taking this all in. The digimon he hated more than any other was planning yet another evil scheme. But this one involved the human world, not just the digital one.

"Why is it he wants to go to the human world?" Trowa asked eventually. "What is it he and his minions going to get out of going there?"

"What do people and digimon with power want?" answered Gennai with a question of his own. When Trowa didn't give him an answer he decided to explain it further.

"More power. That's what he wants. He's not content with ruling over the digital world so he wants to rule the human world too."

"We both know that he DOESN'T rule the digital world Gennai," said Trowa. "If that was true then I wouldn't be living peacefully in a beach-house."

Gennai chuckled at TK's witty remark.

"I'll give you that," he said.

"Well then Gennai, why is it you're telling me about all this? Shouldn't you and Pixiemon be working on a way to stop him."

"Yes, we are. That's why I've come to see you."

Trowa immediately frowned. He now knew EXACTLY where this conversation was going. And he wasn't happy.

"You're barking up the wrong tree Gennai," he said now, his voice full determination.

"Takeru….."

"NO!"

"Takeru please, just be quiet and listen to what I have to say. Please let me speak."

TK glanced back towards the cabin, desperate to leave this conversation, get back inside and eat his supper. However, he stayed to listen to what Gennai was going to say.

"Takeru, I know it's been a long time since we last spoke, and when we did we didn't part on good terms. But I'm now going to repeat what I told you back then. You have to stop being angry. You have to let go of the dark feelings you have festering inside you. There is still a great light inside you, let it reach the surface use it for good again."

TK just scoffed.

"You're right, we've been through this before Gennai and we've finished it before. I'm not a digi-destined anymore and I'm not going to be one ever again, okay? I'm through with that. Period."

Gennai just sighed. That wasn't what he wanted to hear but he wouldn't give up that easily. He decided to try a different approach.

"When was the last time you saw Patamon Takeru?"

"About…. six months ago. Why?"

"Because I know he wants very much to stop Myostimon. But he can't do it without you. He missed you very much you know?"

TK thought about this a little, eventually saying;

"So, you've spoken to Pat have you?"

"Yes I have. He still has your crest and digivice, did you know that?"

"No…. I didn't. Don't know why he bothers though, those old gadgets will never be used again.

"It doesn't have to be that way Takeru. You can still activate the crests' power and be the bearer of Hope again. You just have to let go of the darkness inside you."

"THERE IS NO DARKNESS INSIDE ME!" shouted TK. He was getting very angry now.

"There is nothing like that wrong with me. I just don't want to be a digi-destined anymore and I don't want any part of whatever it is you're planning. I'm sorry about Myotismon, truly I am because I hate him and his dark army of digimon too. But I'm not leaving what I have here to go and fight them, it's not my problem anymore. If Myotismon is going to the real world then get THAT LOT to do something about it."

Gennai knew who Takeru was talking about when he said "that lot".

"Well, it looks like we'll have too then," he said.

"Good," replied Trowa. "Let those idiots play the heroes. I'm not interested in any of that stuff anymore. I'm content with what I have here."

With that Trowa turned on his heel and began making his way back to the house.

"Are you really happy here Takeru? Is this really the life you want? You don't want to see any of your friend or family again? Your mother? Your father."

Trowa halted. He glanced back over his shoulder at Gennai. The digi-guardian looked into the blonde boy's handsome blue eyes. There were tears there.

Trowa didn't respond to Gennai's words. He merely stared for minute before turning and continuing back to the house. Gennai just watched him in silence

"You've grown up Takeru. You may be taller, stronger and wiser. But underneath all that anger you have pent up inside you you're still that kind little boy who misses his family and wants his friends to think he's brave."

**Back in the real world**

Matt (with Tsunomon in his arms) entered the park through the front gate. He'd arranged to meet the other kids here in the park to discuss what their next move should be. He walked along the path way, passing playing children and joggers along the way. Thankfully, Tsunomon didn't seem to be attracting much attention.

"Where's everybody else?" he asked.

"QUIET!" ordered Matt. "You'll blow your cover."

"Sorry," the digimon whispered. "But I don't see any of the others anywhere."

"We said we'd meet in the park's centre, underneath the tall trees where we can talk in privacy, including you digimon."

"Okay."

He continued to walk along and it wasn't long before he could see the tall tree he'd talk about. And he could make out a small group of people standing underneath it.

"There they are," he told Tsunomon. Matt began to run and after a minute or so he reached the spot everyone else was standing.

"Hey Matt," said Tai smiling.

"Hey," Matt replied stopping next to him. "Hey everybody," he also said to everyone else. Along with Tai (who was holding Koromon) there Sora (with Yokomon), Mimi (with Tanemon) and Joe (with Bukamon).

"Where's Izzy and Tentomon?" Matt asked.

"There not here yet," explained Sora. "Izzy always runs a little late."

"Hopefully we don't have to wait too long, I'm getting sun-burnt out here," complained Mimi.

"Oh hush Mimi," said Tai.

He then turned towards Matt.

"Matt, how have things been at home?" (Everyone else began to listen intently.)

Matt just sighed.

"I told my mom and dad guys, about everything….."

"EVERYTHING!? asked Bakumon from Joe's arms.

"Yeah, everything."

"What did they say?" asked Sora, her tone full of empathy.

"They were…. upset…. as you can imagine."

"Oh Matt, I'm so sorry," said Joe now.

"Yeah Matt, me too," chipped in Koromon.

"Poor little TK," said Mimi sadly.

"We need to get back to the digital world guys. We have to go back and rescue him, I can't leave TK there!" Matt was trying desperately to hold himself together.

"We understand Matt," said Tai putting an arm on his friends shoulder. "I'd feel exactly the same it was my little sister Kari."

"How are your mom and dad holding up Matt?" asked Sora. "I can't imagine how shocked and upset they were when told him that about what happened.

Matt sighed and then answered her slowly;

"It's complicated. My mom hasn't stopped crying. TK's her little baby, she's always coddled him, especially since he went to live with her after she and my dad divorced. She ended staying at out apartment last night, she was in too much of state to drive home. Plus there as no way I think she can bare to go back to hers and TK's apartment when she knows he's gone like this. My dad, he's been pretty calm about all of this but I know that underneath he's upset too. He's just trying to stay strong for me and mom.

My mom wanted to come with me and Tsunomon to see you guys, no doubt to ask TK and how we can bring him back but dad talked her out of it. They're both still back at the apartment now and they made me promise I'd tell them everything we discuss when we both get back."

Everybody just nodded. They all felt very sorry for Matt and his and TK's mom and dad. Their little son was lost in a strange world and they couldn't do anything to help him. It must hurt them all so badly.

"HEY GUYS!" yelled a voice from the distance. It was Izzy and he was running towards them carrying something (presumably Motimon) in his arms. He reached them and immediately began to speak.

"Hi everyone, sorry me and Motimon are late."

"We've got something important to tell you all," piped up Motimon.

"What is it?" asked Tanemon.

"I'll tell you all now. Let me just catch my breath and let's get settled."

Everybody put their digimon down and then sat on the ground, getting comfortable. Izzy took his rucksack off his back, pulled out his laptop and turned it on."

"What is Izzy?" asked Tai.

"Well, since the rest of us arrived back here in our world I've spent all week trying to find a way to figure out a way to make contact with the digital world and understand everything there is to know about the digi-gate. That's the portal of light that pulled us in the digital-world in the first place and took us back here again last week."

"Well, what did you find out?" asked Joe.

"Well, that's what I wanted to talk to you all about," said Izzy eagerly.

He opened something up on his computer and began typing away furiously.

"What I managed to find was this digi-data. I couldn't read it but I've spent the last few days translating it all using my digi-vice. Here's what I got."

He turned the laptop around and showed them a document with writing on it. It read;

"_The digi-gate is the most complex of things. The portal's openings and closings are a rare eve_nt, _the frequency of which varies and has never been fully deciphered. However, digi-scholars do believe is that the portal opens at times of unrest and disturbance, when darkness is spreading its evil influence over the peaceful digital-world. Some theorise that the portal opens in order to try and spread light to combat the darkness. As long as there is darkness, light will rise up to fight it. That is what many believe the portal truly is, a symbol light which help good forces combat evil."_

Everyone read the document and when everyone had finished they all looked up towards Izzy.

"Did you all get that?" he asked.

"Sort of," said Joe.

"What's it trying to say," asked Mimi ditzly. "What's all this about light and darkness?"

"Okay, listen all of you," Izzy said calmly. "I'm going to explain my theory to all of you. And that's all it is, a theory."

"Go ahead Izzy," said Tai.

"Okay, I believe the reason the digi-gate opened in the first place and took all of us to the digital world is because of the darkness was beginning to spread throughout in the digital world. Things like the dark spirals, Devimon and Myotismon, they were all affecting the lives of innocent digimon. The digital-world needed something to come and save it from evil. And that something was us, the digi-destined."

Everyone digested what he'd told them. Matt was the first to speak.

"That actually makes a lot of sense now that I think about it," he said.

"Yeah," said Tai. "It does."

"Looks like you've cracked it kids. Well done."

Everyone jumped. None of them, the kids or the digimon had said that. The voice had come from the computer. A figure popped up on Izzy's laptop screen. It was Gennai.

"Hello everyone, it's nice to see you all again."

"GENNAI!" they all yelled in unison.

Gennai just chuckled. Everyone proceeded to yell and ask questions all at once in excitement at seeing the digi-guardian again.

"CALM DOWN GUYS," he shouted (they all instantly shut up). "One at a time."

"Gennai," said Matt quickly. "I'm so glad we're getting to speak to you again. There's so much I need to talk you about!"

"I know," the old man replied.

"My brother, TK. He's... he's…."

"Still here in the digital world? I know."

"You do?"

"Yes, I do. Me and Pixiemon have been keeping an eye on him."

"IS HE OKAY!?"

"Yes, he's fine, for now at least. Myotismon knows that all of you digi-destineds have left the digital world. He doesn't know that your brother is still here."

"What's TK doing? Is he with Patamon?" Matt was desperate to hear more.

"No, he's not with Patamon," said Gennai shortly.

"HE'S NOT WITH PATAMON?" asked Tai actually now.

"No, he and Patamon aren't together currently."

"YOU MEAN HE'S ALL ALONE," asked Matt. This was unbearable.

"No, he's not Matt. TK is being taken care of by some other digimon. Like I said, he's fine right now. He just missed you all."

Matt dropped his head. Poor brother, he wanted to find and hold him so tight. He just wanted him back.

"How come Patamon isn't with TK?" asked Koromon.

"That's not for me to say," replied Gennai.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Yokomon.

"The reason TK and Patamon aren't together is between them. You'll have to ask either of those two, I'm not involved in that."

"How are we supposed to do that?" asked Mimi. "We can't get back to the digital world."

"Unless Gennai knows a way to open the digi-gate for us."

"Do you Gennai?" asked Tai.

"No, I'm afraid not," he responded. "But somebody else does."

"WHO!?" they all demanded.

"Myotismon," he told them grimly.

They all took a sharp in-take of breath. Gennai explained things further.

"Me and Pixiemon have reason to believe that Myotismon has found a way to open the portal and he intends to do so soon."

"What for?" asked Tsunomon.

"He's coming there, to the real world. And he's bringing his army with him."

They all gasped.

"Yes, he's decided that he's not satisfied with spreading his evil all over the digital world. He wants to conquer your human world as well. I'm here to warn you all."

"What do we do?" asked Sora.

"You all need to prepare to battle him and his forces of darkness. Otherwise your world and everything you hold dear will be lost."

"We'll fight that evil jerk!" declared Tai standing up. His voice as his usual loud determination.

"YEAH!" said everyone else in unison standing up too.

"What about my brother?" demanded Matt. He was still skulking.

"You will see him again soon enough Matt," explained Gennai patiently. "When the digi-gate opens I'm confident that he'll come through the portal too. You will have your chance to be re-united with him them."

Matt nodded.

"I must go now everybody," Gennai said. "Remember everything I've told you. Myotismon will arrive here soon, you must be ready when that day comes."

**That's chapter 8. I hope you enjoyed it. The good stuff is being built up and is coming soon, just keep reading! Next chapter will be up tomorrow likely. Please rate and review.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi guys, time for chapter 9. Thanks to everyone who is reviewing this story, it is VERY much appreciated. **

**Please forgive any spelling mistakes.**

Trowa was tucking into his fish supper with Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon at the kitchen table but was being awfully quiet. He had a lot on his mind after everything he'd just discussed with Gennai. And the other two had noticed.

"What's wrong Tro buddy?" asked Gotsumon as he and Pumpkinmon broke away from their previous conversation.

"Wha… what?" asked Trowa coming back to reality.

"You've barely said anything since you came back inside. What was that you and that old guy talked about?"

"Oh… er… nothing."

"Nothing huh? asked Pumpkinmon joining in now.

"Yeah, nothing," Trowa replied.

"Oh come on Tro dude, you can't fool us. Spill the beans," urged Gotsumon.

"Yeah, come on buddy. We know you'll end up telling us eventually anyway."

Trowa just sighed and shook his head. Eventually he answered with;

"Oh fine then, I'll tell you."

He pushed his plate away and sat up probably. Gotsumon and Pumpkin both did the same. Obviously this was going to be something very important.

"The one who came to see me was Gennai," he explained.

"That's his name!" said Gotsumon snapping his fingers. "We've seen him a few times before, we just couldn't remember his name."

"Anyway," Trowa continued. "He's known as the guardian of the whole digital-world. I'm not sure whether he's a digimon like you guys or a human like me, all I know is that he's somehow in tune with everything that happens in this world.

"Yeah…. go on…." urged Pumpkinmon.

"Anyway, when I used to run around as a member of the digi-destined, Gennai used to help us out a lot. He told us all about evil digimon and all the other dangers we had to face. Anyway, since I've been with you guys he's occasionally come to talk me and every time he asks me to rejoin the digi-destined."

"So that's why he was here just now was he?" asked Gotsumon. "Bugging you to be a digi-destined again and to fight Myotismon? You'd think he'd have got the message by now if you've told him no a bunch of times before."

"I thought so too," said Trowa. "But the reason he came here tonight had more reasons. It does involve Myotismon yes."

"What about him? He's not found out that you're here has he?"

"No, I don't think so. But Gennai did say that Myotismon has found a way to go to the human world and he wants to go and take it over."

"HE WHAT!?" yelled both digimon in unison.

"Yeah, crazy isn't it?" replied Trowa.

"He wants to take over the human world?" asked Pumpkinmon in complete dis-belief. "Why would he want to do that?"

Trowa just shrugged.

"So this Gennai guy wants you to go back with Patamon and be a digi-destined again?" asked Gotsumon.

"Yeah, that's pretty much what he was asking me to do exactly."

"And what did you say?"

"I told him no, like I always have done."

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon exchanged glances. Trowa looked between them, confused by their surprised expressions.

"What?" he demanded.

"Nothing Tro, it's just we didn't expect you to say that."

"How come?"

"Well… because… you hate Myotismon. You always have. We'd have thought that you'd probably agree to fight and stop him if asked too, especially if he really is planning to go to the human world."

Trowa looked at both his friends intensely again.

"Why is it you guys think I'd suddenly jump at the chance to be a digi-destined again?" he asked.

"Well er… we don't think that, it's just…"

TK stood up from his chair

"Gotusmon! Pumpkinmon! You guys no me better than anyone. You know full well that I hate those other kids and want nothing to do with them! I've told you guys so many times over the years we've all been together, that ship sailed a long time ago. All I want is to live here in peace!"

"Of course Tro, we understand that completely," explained Pumpkinmon trying to calm him down.

"I know me and Patamon made up but that doesn't mean I want us to be digi-partners again," Trowa further explained. "If I ever see him we're friendly to each other but were not best pals or anything like we were when I was little. Things change."

"So Gennai knew you and Patamon were talking again and thought that meant you'd say yes to getting the partnership back together?" asked Gotsumon.

"Yeah, probably," answered Trowa.

"Well he was barking up the wrong tree wasn't he!"

"R

Exactly what I said. Look guys, I don't want to go back to that life. I'm happy with the life I have now, here with you guys. I don't want to be a digi-destined and I don't want to go back to the human world. That stuff is behind me now. And I'm only looking forward."

Pumpkinmon stood and grabbed Trowa's hand.

"We understand Trowa pal. You do whatever you want to do. Me and Gotsumon promised that when we first decided to take you in that we'd look after you no matter what. If you want to stay here and not go back to your old life then that's fine, we support you.

Trowa was very touched by that. These guys were the only friends and family he wanted.

"Thanks guys," he said trying to hold himself together.

"No problem, now come on, let's all go to bed and forget that Gennai guy ever came here today."

"Right," said Trowa nodding. He gave both his friends a thumbs up and then headed towards his room. After closing the door behind him Pumpkinmon turned to Gotsumon and spoke.

"What do you think about all this?"

"I think we haven't heard the last of this," Gotsumon replied.

"Yeah, I think you're right," Pumpkinmon replied.

"We both knew this day would come eventually, that one day Tro's old friends would come looking for him."

"Yeah I did but you heard him Gotsumon. He doesn't want anything to do with them, he wants to stay with us."

"I know but do you really think that's realistic Pumpkinmon? Right now he's just being stubborn because he's still upset one what happened. One day though he'll decide he wants to go back and be with his fellow human in own world."

"Well, if that day ever comes we need to stand by him Gotsumon. Like I just told him, we promised we'd look after him. And I intend to keep that promise."

"Me too. But the day will come when he doesn't need us to look after him anymore. And that day is getting closer."

**Myotismon's Lair**

"Is the portal ready to be opened yet?" demanded Myotismon of his servants. His patience with these vermin fools was quickly running out.

"Almost Master," one of them replied. "Just a few more hours."

"YOU SAID THAT A WHOLE DAY AGO!"

"Please Master! We're sorry!"

"SILENCE. MY PATIENCE WITH YOU IS DRAWING THIN! GRISLY WING!"

Myotismon's attack struck his unfortunate servant directly causing him to immediately disintegrate into data. All the other servants cowered in fear of their master's wrath. Myotismon turned to them.

"WHAT ARE THE REST OF WAITING FOR!? GET BACK TO WORK AND GET THIS PORTAL OPEN! NOW!"

They all did as they were and began working away.

"Way to go boss," chirped Demi-Devimon.

"SPEAK ONLY WHEN YOU'RE SPOKEN TOO!" ordered Myotismon now. Demi-Devimon quickly began to cower too.

"How am I supposed to reach the human world to get those blasted digi-destineds when I'm surrounded by imbeciles!?"

**Several hours later **

"Master, Master, it's almost ready!"

"Excellent," said Myotismon. He then turned towards his bat digimon minion.

"When the portal opens, you know what you have to do."

"Yes Master," said Demi-Devimon nervously. "Find those digi-destined kids and stake them out."

"Yes. And you Phantmon?"

The Phantom digimon drifted over to join them.

"Yes Master, we capture their loved ones."

"Yes," smiled Myotismon. "If we hold their families to ransom those digi-destined children will have no choice but to hand over their crests to me. And with the power of the crests I will be able to digivolve to my Mega digimon form and then I'll be able to rule over both worlds. HAHAHAHA!"

"Master, the portal, it's opening."

Myotismon turned to the cave wall to see it opening up. He and all his servants were greeted by a blinding light.

"Finally," said Myotismon. "Those pitiful children cannot hide from me any longer."

He walked forwards and together with Demi-Devimon, Phantomon and the rest of his digimon servants, they all entered the light. The evil digimon had finally found his way to human world.

**The Real World**

"Mom? Dad? Kari?"

Tai had gotten home from the park meeting to find his apartment completely empty.

"There's nobody home," he said to Koromon in his arms.

"Good, does that mean you fix me something to eat? I'm starving," the digimon whined.

"Sure pal," replied Tai. He put Koromon down onto the sofa and made his way over to fridge. As he was pulling out various foods to put together to make a sandwich he heard a noise from behind. It was a bedroom door opening.

"Aaaah, who's that?" he gasped. He quickly saw it was only his little sister.

"Oh, it's only you Kari."

"Hi Tai," she smiled. She then turned to the sofa;

"Hi Koromon," she added (Kari knew all about Koromon).

"Hi Kari," the digimon replied.

"Where are Mom and Dad Kari?" asked Tai.

"They've gone shopping," she told him. "I didn't feel like going. Where have you and Koromon been?"

"We just went to meet up with some friends from camp, that's all."

"Okay." She made her way over to the sofa, sat down beside Koromon and began watching TV with him. Tai went back to the fridge.

"It's such a shame what's happened to TK," he thought to himself. "It's rare that I see Matt emotional but he really devastated I can tell. His parents must be too. I wish I'd never been pulled back into the real world by Etemon. Otherwise the group wouldn't have split up and TK would never have been left alone in the first place. I can't help but think that some of this is my fault."

He sighed and closed the fridge door, putting several jars onto the kitchen counter and taking some bread out of the cupboard.

"Do you want a sandwich Kari?" he asked. "I'm making some for me and Koromon."

"No thank you," she replied. She was stroking Koromon's head. She, him and Tai then though were all suddenly scared out of their skins.

"Tai, Kari, Koromon," said a voice.

"WHOA!?" gasped Tai jumping back.

"Who said that? Who's there?" He began frantically looking around.

"TAI!" yelled Koromon. "Throw me that sandwich so I can digivolve!"

Tai immediately did as he was told, picking the freshly made sandwich and launching it. Koromon jumped of the sofa, leapt upwards and met the sandwich in the air. He devoured in one bite. As soon he hit the ground….

"KOROMON DIGIVOLVED TOO… AGUMON!"

"Tai, I'm frightened," said Kari cowering on the couch.

"It's okay Kari, I'll protect you," reassured Agumon.

"Who it is who's here, come out and show yourself!" demanded Tai.

"Tai…." said the voice again. "Tai, over here…."

Tai looked over towards the computer, and saw the face of none other Gennai staring back at him.

"WHOA, GENNAI!" he gasped.

"That's right," the old man smiled. "Sorry if I scared you."

"What are you doing on my Dad's computer?" Tai asked.

"I need to talk to show," he answered.

"Talk to me?"

"Yes. You, Agumon and your sister Kari too."

"Kari…. what do you need to talk to her about?"

"About the digital world. You see Tai, Kari is also a digi-destined. Just like you and everyone else."

"I am?" asked Kari curiously.

"Indeed you are Kari," smiled Gennai. "You're the eighth digi-destined child."

Tai and Agumon were dumbstruck. Kari was in awe.

"You both have to come to the digital world, immediately." Gennai's tone was extremely serious.

"You what!?" gasped Tai. "Come to the digital world, now? Both of us? How on Earth do we do that?"

"Use your digivice," explained Gennai. "Kari will have her own digivice now. Look under the sofa."

Kari immediately did so and found a strange something.

"Hey what's this?" she asked holding whatever it was she'd found up to show everyone.

"A DIGIVICE….." said Tai dumbfounded. "What? How did….? When….?"

"It's not important how I put it there. The fact is that you need to realise that Kari is a digi-destined now. And I need the both of you to come to digital world. Hold up your digivices."

Tai held up his own digivice and pointed it at the computer screen. Kari did the same. Both digivices quickly began to glow.

"OH MY GOD! IT'S HAPPENING!" shouted Tai as he began to feel the force of being pulled.

"TAI!" shouted Kari.

"IT'S OKAY GUYS!" shouted Agumon. "WE'RE GOING BACK!"

**That's chapter 9 done. Sorry this one is a bit shorter. And I know I rushed the whole "Kari is a digi-destined" but to be honest to squeeze it in quick and get it over with. I didn't want to leave her out of this story but didn't want to spend a whole chapter explaining her in. Gatomon will be introduced as her digimon soon. This whole chapter was a bit rushed but again, it's just building up to the good stuff which is coming.**

**Anyway, the next chapter will be fully set in the digital-world and some old friends will have themselves a reunion hehe. What do you think will happen? Let me know your suggestions.**

**Please rate and review.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Time for Chapter 10. Tai, Kari and Agumon have all re-entered the digital world thanks to Gennai in the last chapter and we'll be picking it up from there directly. Like I said, some things that were big aspects the story in the show will be kind of rushed through and glossed over in this story (e.g. Kari being the eight child. This is mainly a TK story remember). They'll be meeting up with an old friend so please read on and enjoy. Forgive any spelling mistakes.**

**Chapter 10**

Tai, Kari and Agumon all felt themselves hit the floor hard after passing through the light coming from their father's computer.

"Ow," whined Tai (he bumped his head).

"Are you okay Tai?" asked Kari.

"Yeah, I'm fine Kari. Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"Agumon? How about you?"

"TAI!" screeched Agumon who'd already sat up. "LOOK!"

"Wha…?" asked Tai sitting up himself whilst rubbing his sore head. "WHOA!"

"Where are we Tai?" asked Kari worriedly, she didn't recognize their new surroundings. They certainly weren't in the apartment anymore.

"I don't believe it," stuttered Tai. "We're back here in the digital world!"

"YES WE ARE!" beamed Agumon. The rookie was extremely pleased to be back in his own world.

"Wait? How did? Where is?" Tai could only continue to stutter in amazement. They were really back here.

"Tai, I'm frightened," said Kari. She had stood up and began to look around. This was the little girl's first time in the digital world, she wasn't used to such strange surroundings.

"It's okay Kari," reassured Agumon. "You're safe with me and Tai."

"That's right sis," said Tai standing up himself. "You'll get used to this place in time."

The boy began to look around his surroundings probably to try and see if he could work out exactly where about in the digital world they were.

"Where did Gennai go?" ask Agumon thoughtfully.

"I dunno," Tai replied. He then turned towards his sister who still looked over-awed.

"Kari, let me see your digivice."

Kari handed her digivice to him and Tai began to inspect it. He looked it at closely and then held it up against his own. They looked identical.

"This looks like a genuine thing," he said. "Oh my god Kari, you really are a digi-destined too."

"I am?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Well, what does being a digi-destined mean?"

"I'll answer that," said an unseen voice. It was the same voice from back in the apartment."

"Gennai!?" yelled Tai. "Are you there?"

"Indeed I am," replied the voice. It came from behind the trio. They turned around and saw the digi-guardian staring back at them.

"Jeez Gennai, stop doing that," Tai complained. "It's creepy."

Gennai just ignored him, he instead proceeded to answer Kari's question.

"Kari, you are the eighth digi-destined child," he explained to her as she listened intensely.

"There were always intended to be eight digi-destined children as they are eight crests. Unfortunately, because you were too sick originally you've had to be introduced to the digital-world a little later than everyone else. But now you're here and you have your digivice."

Tai, Kari and Agumon hung on his everyone word. Tai was the one who decided to ask a question.

"If Kari's a digi-destined then where's her digimon? And how come she doesn't have a crest?"

"That is more complicated," said Gennai now. "I'm afraid Myotismon himself is in possession of both. He himself found Kari's crest which is the crest of Light and is keeping it for himself?

"The crest of Light?" asked Kari.

"Yes," said Gennai nodding.

"And what about her digimon?" asked Agumon.

"That digimon is also under Myotismon's control but I'm confident that Kari will get to meet him or her soon. I'm working on that."

Kari and Agumon just nodded. Tai though was still confused.

"Look Gennai, how have we come here to digital world? I thought the digi-gate had closed. How did you manage to open it again? Why don't we bring the others here too?"

"Good questions," said the digi-guardian. "You're here because the digi-gate is now open again. It was opened by Myostimon."

"Opened by Myotismon!?"

"Yes, Myotismon had found a way to open the portal which connect our worlds and has used it. He is now in the human world."

"He is?"

"Yes, he and some of his servants have entered your world. He will stop at nothing to destroy you digi-destined kids once and for all. Even if it means going to your world."

"Oh no," said Kari.

"The digi-gate is now open kids. The connection between the our worlds is now active again."

"Well we've got to go back and inform the others!" said Tai. "We've got to let the others know about this. We've got to tell them that we can come back into the digital world."

"Not right now," Gennai told him shaking his head. "For now I have a job for just you Tai. You, Agumon and Kari here."

"What is it?" Tai asked.

"How would you like to be reunited with a friend?" Gennai asked. Tai immediately clicked onto what he was talking about."

"TK!?" he gasped.

Gennai nodded.

"TK, can you take us to TK!?" he asked.

"Yes," nodded Gennai again. "I going to take the three of you to see him."

"GREAT!" beamed Tai. "The others told me about him being left here in the digital world all alone. I bet he'll be so happy to me and also when I take him back to our world."

Gennai merely sighed.

"There is something you have to know about TK," he said gravely.

"What?" asked Agumon. "He's okay isn't he?"

"Yes, he's fine. Don't worry about that. It's something else."

"What?"

"You see kids, something you may not know about the digital world. Time passes differently here than it does in your world."

"Oh yeah, we spent weeks here but when I went back to human world it was still only August 1st, the day we left for camp."

"Exactly, time passes more quickly here. You and the rest of the digi-destined have all spent a week at home in your world. A lot longer has passed in this world whilst TK's been here alone."

"How long?" Tai asked slightly nervously.

Gennai sighed before answering.

"Seven years," he said.

"SEVEN YEARS!?" gasped both Tai and Agumon in absolute disbelief.

"Yes, seven years. TK has spent the equivalent of seven years here in the digital world."

"Oh my God…." Said Tai. he was completely stunned.

"What does this all mean?" asked Kari who was confused.

"It means that…. that TK…. he's…. seven years older!?" said Tai.

"Yes," nodded Gennai.

"Oh man….."

"I need you to come and see him," he said.

"Where is he?"

"He lives not too far from here."

"He LIVES here?"

"Of course, he's been here seven years remember? TK had to find himself a place to settle. No come on all three to come with me, I will take you to meet him. Prepare yourself."

…...

**Later…..**

Trowa was sitting on the porch of his beach-house in his wooden chair. There was a light breeze in the air but the sun was out and shining. Perfect weather for fishing but Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon had gone today instead (the boat could only hold two of them, they'd learnt that in the falling in the lake incident). So he decided he'd have a doze in the shade instead. Little did he know that he visitors approaching. Most unexpected visitors.

**Meanwhile…..**

"Over there is where TK lives," explained Gennai pointing out the hut to Tai, Kari and Agumon. "TK will likely be inside there."

"Oh brother…."

"Listen Tai my boy, you need to go over and see your friend. Talk to him and tell him that you've come to take him home." Gennai's tone was a very serious.

"Well okay…." The boy stuttered. "This is going to be weird though, I mean, TK is really only the same age as Kari. But if he's seven years older now then that makes him even older than me!"

"Indeed," agreed Gennai. "He'll definitely be different from the little boy you know so well. But he's still TK. Go see him."

And with that the digi-guardian vanished into thin air. It was so scary how he could do that.

"Well, it looks like we have no choice guys," said Tai. "Let's go see TK."

…...

TK was half-asleep, the cool breeze was so relaxing. He had his feet up and crossed on top of a small porch table. He didn't hear the sound of three people walking towards him.

"Who's that there on the porch?" asked Kari. She was pointing towards a figure who could be seen sitting a chair. Tai focused his eyes. It was a human, and he had blonde hair.

"It must be TK!" he said. He began to run towards the figure shouting excitedly.

"TK! TK! IT'S ME! TAI!"

Trowa was awoken from his doze from the sounds of someone shouting. He opened his eyes to look around. And couldn't believe what they were showing him.

Tai Kamiya was running along the beach towards him shouting and waving. Surely this was a dream or a mirage?

"TK!" roared Tai getting closer.

Trowa's jaw dropped.

Tai reached him and stopped in front of the porch steps. He was beaming ear to ear.

"TK, it's you!" he said.

"Tai? Is that really you?" asked Trowa in complete disbelief.

"Yeah TK, it's really me," beamed Tai.

Trowa could only stare, his mind-blown. After so long…..

"TK, you've grown so much!" he said.

Trowa stood up from his chair and brought his whole frame into Tai's focuse. The brown-headed boy looked the blonder up and down. TK had changed so much.

He wasn't ANYTHING like the little boy Tai had previously knew. TK used to be sweet faced, very little and cute. Now he was MUCH taller (about the same height as Tai himself). Tai inspected TK's face. Whereas his friend, being so young, had used to have chubby cheeks and big dimples that you'd expect from a little boy he no looked very handsome and lean. His still looked very boyish though. Boyishly handsome. He looked like Matt's double they were so similar.

Tai now inspected TK's clothes. He used to wear a cute outfit with a green hat, green shirt, brown shorts and little green shoes. Now he looked FAR different.

TK was wearing a black vest which showed off thin but strong-looking arms, navy blue pants and expensive looking brown cowboy boots. It was a strange outfit.

Just then, Kari and Agumon caught up and reached them.

"Tai!" called Kari. She reached her big brother. She looked at the person standing above him them on the porch. This must be Tai's friend TK. She shyly hid behind her brother.

"TK, is that you?" asked Agumon as he saw the boy.

Trowa still didn't speak. He was still in shock.

"Yeah it is," answered Tai for him. "You're definitely TK. You've grown so much pal!"

Trowa finally found his voice.

"Tai? Agumon? You guys are really here?"

"Yeah, it's us TK! We've found you!"

"How? How did you guys get here? How did you find me!"

"The digi-gate has finally opened again. Gennai brought us here to see you."

Trowa swallowed.

"He did?"

"Yeah. Man oh man. I can't believe you've been here in the digital world for seven whole years!"

"Yeah, I have." That was all Trowa could say.

"Cool boots," Tai remarked too now with a smile.

Trowa just nodded with a slight smile of his own.

"Oh my God Tai, I'm just in shock. I can't believe what I'm seeing."

"Me neither TK buddy."

"Look, all of you come inside. We'll have a talk and a catch up."

"Cool."

Trowa then beckoned the three to join him as he opened the front door of the beach house and stepped inside. Tai, Kari and Agumon followed him inside.

**Another short chapter. Better stuff coming I promise, just didn't have much time to write tonight. What do you think of this chapter? Please rate and review. We'll pick this up tomorrow in the next chapter will be a longer.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Time for chapter 11. Follows on directly from the last one. Time for an emotional reunion for two old friends. Lots of drama! Please forgive any spelling mistakes.**

Trowa sat down at his table with Tai, Kari and Agumon. It was still very awkward for the four them being together like this. Tai and Agumon because TK was now unrecognisable, for Trowa because he still couldn't believe it was really them and for Kari because she's never met this boy before. She was the one who broke the ice.

"So, you're name is TK?" she asked curiously.

The other three turned to look at her. Trowa answered her.

"Yes and no," he replied.

That really confused both Tai and Agumon. What a mysterious answer that was, what did he mean yes "and no"?

"What?" asked Tai. "What's that supposed to mean TK?"

Trowa turned back to Tai. Boy this was going to be hard.

"Look Tai, there's a lot of things you don't know. A lot has happened while I've been here in the digital world. I don't use that name anymore?"

"You don't call yourself TK anymore!?" asked Agumon bewildered. "Why not? That's your name."

"Like I said, it's complicated," Trowa replied. This was VERY awkward for everyone in the room.

"Look, can you two please give me and Tai a few minutes alone?" Trowa asked now (he was talking to Kari and Agumon).

"Huh, why?" she asked.

"Me and Tai go way back. I need to explain some things to him and it would be easier if it were just me and him in the room."

Kari looked at her brother. Tai himself then looked at Agumon, to TK and then back at Kari. He then nodded.

"Okay guys, gives a couple minutes okay?" he asked of his digi-partner and sister.

"Okay," Kari said sadly.

"Come on Kari, we'll just wait outside," said Agumon. "You'll be safe with me."

The digimon took Kari by the hand and led her to the door.

"Take care of her Agumon," Tai called as he watched them go.

"I will," the digimon shouted back. After he'd closed the door Tai turned back to face TK. It was time for them a serious talk.

"Well TK," he began. "I think we need to have a long talk."

"Indeed," said Trowa nodding. "Okay Tai, I'm going to tell you everything that's gone on. You're about to learn A LOT now. Please, let me finish and get all off my chest. I've waited seven to say all the stuff I'm about to say."

Tai slowly nodded.

"Okay man, go ahead."

Trowa sighed. He was right in what he'd just said, this moment had been coming seven long years.

He took a long, deep breathe and then…. he was off. He told his former fellow digi-destined EVERYTHING. How he'd spent seven whole years here in the digital world. How he'd spent years hiding from Myotismon. How he's fell out and subsequently made up (sort of) with Patamon. How he'd changed from the little boy that Tai had known so well. Also, his frustration, his anger, his hurt, his decisions and his current feelings about certain people.

The reason he was doing this was because Tai Kamiya was the only digi-destined TK WASN'T angry with. He bore no anger towards Tai like he did everyone else (especially Matt). And that was because Tai had NEVER left him, not in TK's mind.

You see, Tai had been dragged back into the real world during the battle with Etemon. Tai had never intended to leave the group. Everyone else had left deliberately though. They had been selfish by deciding to go their own ways. First Sora, then Joe, then Izzy, then Mimi and then finally Matt. They'd all left TK of their own free will. But Tai never had done. And TK had always remembered that.

When Trowa had finally finished his speech of sorts and Tai was left open mouthed by everything he'd just heard.

"You…. you…. don't…. want…. come…. home?" he said in disbelief. That was all the bearer of Courage could say, he was almost speechless.

"No," said Trowa firmly.

"But TK, what about your mom? Your dad? Everything back in the real world? Your home?"

Trowa just sighed.

"What did I say Tai? I don't go by that name anymore. My name is TROWA. And this, the digital world, is my home now. I'm staying here. I belong here."

"But… but… TK…. I mean…. Trowa. You're family What about them?"

Trowa turned his back on Tai now, unable to meet his eyes. He spoke very quietly, his voice so low that Tai had to strain his eyes to hear him.

"Tai, you have to understand. I can't go back to them even if I wanted too. They don't…. they won't…. (his voice began to crack. This was so hard for him to say, it was something that had been on his mind for a long time). I'm not the boy they remember anymore. I'm not the people they remember and know."

He was struggling to hold himself together. His eyes were watery.

"Tai, my mom and dad only know me as an eight year old boy. A little baby. But I'm not eight anymore, I'm FIFTEEN! I'm older than you, I've grown up. On my own. Can you imagine if I went back to see them, they probably wouldn't even recognise me or want to know me."

"Of course they would," said Tai desperately. "Of course they'd remember you pal. Of course they would want to know, you can't possibly think that just because you've got older here in the digital world that they won't want love anymore. They love you more than anything. They're in pieces back home because they know you're here and can't come and find you."

Trowa didn't reply to that. He merely stayed silent. Tai continued to stare at the back of his friend's head, desperate for him to see sense and believe him.

Eventually their awkward silence was broken by the sounds of raised voices outside.

"Hey who are you guys?" asked a voice. "What are you doing here?"

"We're waiting for my brother Tai," came Kari's reply. "He's inside talking to TK."

"Who's that!?" shouted Tai looking towards the door.

"It'll just be Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon," Trowa reassured him coolly. "Like I told you, they live here with me."

Trowa finally turned around and walked towards the door. Tai was sure he caught of glimpse of watery eyes as he'd past him. Trowa opened the front door and called;

"It's okay guys, there here to me see. It's cool."

"Oh, okay Tro buddy."

"Tro?" whispered Tai under his breath.

He then saw Agumon, Kari and two other digimon walk into the room. These must be TK's friends, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. Both were carrying fishing rods.

"These guys don't look much," thought Tai. "They're the ones TK's been with all this time? He blew Patamon off for these guys?"

"Tai, this is Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon, my friends." Trowa introduced the two to Tai and made sure to put emphasis on the word 'friends'. Tai had understood the hint.

"Hi," he said nervously to the two digimon.

"Hi," they both replied in unison.

"Hey, I know you two!" Agumon burst out now. "You two work for Myotismon!"

All eyes in the room snapped too him.

"No we don't," said Gotsumon defensively.

"Yeah, that was a LONG time ago," said Pumpkinmon.

"You mean you guys did work for Myotismon," asked Tai now.

"Once, yes."

"Yeah, but it was years ago. We've been with Trowa here for a long time now. We're best friends."

"Yes, we are," agreed Trowa. "We've all been together for a long time. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon, these guys are my family now."

"But TK…."

"NO TAI!" Trowa snapped now. "Just accept it. I'm not that little kid anymore. I'm a big boy now who make his own decisions. And this is what I've decided, I'm staying here. Not going back. And you can tell Gennai and everyone else that."

Tai was open mouthed again. As where Kari and Agumon.

"I think you all better go now," the blonde said now.

Tai just sighed. That sounded very final.

"Okay, we'll leave. Kari, Agumon, let's go."

"But… but… what about TK?" asked Kari.

"He's not coming with us," Tai stated.

He walked towards the door and Kari and Agumon cautiously slowly him. He opened the door and lead them outside. Before closing the door after him he gave TK one last look. The blonde boy had turned his back again and wasn't looking at him. Tai's heart completely sunk and he closed the door.

"TK, what happened to you?" he thought sadly. "How am I going to explain to Matt?"

**Later…..**

Tai, Kari and Agumon were home in the real world now after their journey to the digital world. What a day they'd all had. Kari and Agumon were in their bedroom after having supper but Tai was on the balcony, trying to get himself together. He'd been left in such a state of shock after talking with TK that he'd barely said anything since arriving home and hadn't touched his supper.

"TK, how did he become like that?" he kept asking himself over and over. "He seriously doesn't want to come back and see anyone, not even Matt, his mom or his dad ever again. How can he possibly feel that way?"

"Tai," called his mother, Mrs Kamiya.

"What Mom?" replied Tai.

"What are you doing out there?"

"Just getting some fresh air Mom. I'll come inside in a minute."

"You didn't touch your supper, are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah Mom, just not hungry."

"Well okay, if you say so."

She then left him to go back to his thoughts.

"How on Earth am I going to tell any of the others about this, let alone Matt?" he wondered. "What will they say when they find out that not only is TK even older than us now, but he wants nothing to do with us either."

He just sighed. He'd made his mind about what he was going to do. He headed back inside.

"Mom, Dad," he called.

"Both his parents were sitting on the sofa watching TV.

"Yeah son?" asked his father.

"I'm just going to make a phone call okay? I gotta call…. Izzy."

"What for?"

"Just too make arrangements to meet up with him tomorrow."

"Okay Tai, but don't be long. The phone bill costs more after 6pm."

"Okay."

With that he picked up the phone and walked back onto the balcony. He quickly dialled Izzy's number.

(Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring).

There was no answer.

"Damn, there must be no one home." He then tried to think who else he would call instead. He eventually decided on Sora. He then dialled her number.

(Ring, ring, ring…..)

"Hello?" asked a woman's voice.

"Oh hello Mrs Takenouchi. Is Sora there please, it's Tai Kamiya.

"Hold on a moment."

After a minute or so another voice came onto the phone.

"Hello, Tai?"

"Yeah Sora, it's me."

"What is it?" she asked.

"I need to talk to you, about something important."

"Okay, what is it? Is it About the digital world?"

"Yes."

Tai sighed again.

"Tai what is it?" Sora asked urgently.

"Sora…" he said. "Sora, get ready for this because what I'm about to tell will blow your mind?"

"What's happened?" she asked sounding worried now.

"Kari is the eight digi-destined," he stated.

"WHAT!?"

"My sister Kari, she's a digi-destined like us. She has a digivice and a crest."

"Oh my god…"

"I know, I'm gobsmacked too."

"How did she get them?"

"Gennai. He spoke to through my dad's computer earlier. He gave Kari a digivice and told us everything. But that's not all."#

"Why, what else?"

"Sora, the digi-gate, it's open again. Right now as we speak."

There was stunned silence from the other end of the phone. Tai decided to continue speaking.

"Gennai took me, Kari and Agumon to the digital world. We can go there again, the portal is well and truly open again."

"But how?"

"Because of Myotismon. He's here Sora, Gennai told us that Myotismon has opened the gate and has come here to our world, just like Gennai told us he would."

"Oh no…."

"Wait, I haven't even told you the most important part."

He sighed again, a very long deep one.

"Sora…. We went back to the digital world and…. and I…. I met with TK."

"YOU SAW TK!?" she gasped. "OH MY GOD!"

"I know.

"How is he!? Where did you find him!? Where is he now!?"

"Gennai took us to see him. He's fine, but he's still in the digital world now."

"HE'S STILL IN THE DIGITAL WORLD!? TAI, WHY DIDN'T YOU BRING HIM BACK!? MATT WILL KILL YOU WHEN HE FIND'S OUT YOU SAW BUT LEFT HIM THERE!?

"Sora, please listen," begged Tai now. Sora sighed down the phone and calmed herself down.

"Sora, about TK, he's….. he's changed."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you know how time in the digital world moves differently to time in our world?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, one week has passed in our world since all of us got back but…. seven years…. Seven years has passed in the digital world."

"SEVEN YEARS!?" gasped Sora.

"Yeah," answered Tai grimly.

"But, that means…..

"That TK is seven years older now since he's been there all that time. I met him Sora, he's FIFTEEN now."

"OH MY…."

**That's it for now. Hope you enjoyed, lots of drama eh? New chapter tomorrow. Please rate and review.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Time for chapter 12. Longer chapter this time, with lots happening and plenty of drama. Read on, you'll like it I promise. Please forgive any spelling mistakes.**

**Location: Tai and Kari's bedroom**

Tai, Kari, Sora and Izzy were sat with their digimon (Koramon, Motimon and Yokomon). Tai had called another meeting with his fellow digi-destined to explain the latest events for his house. The only person deliberately not invited was Matt and Tsunomon.

"Where's Mimi and Joe, and their digimon?" asked Tai looking at his watch. They were still waiting for those two before starting.

"Mimi's always late," Sora told him. "But Joe…."

"Joe has to get all across town on the subway," explained Izzy. "Something's obviously held him up."

"Yeah well, I'm getting sick of waiting," Tai complained.

"They'll be here soon, Matt too," said Sora.

Tai gave her a stern look, he hadn't yet told them that Matt wasn't coming.

"Yeah now come on Tai, lighten up," Kari urged. His little sister was now firmly involved with things, now that she was a digi-destined she could be part of these meetings too. Tai merely pulled a face at her before he got up and started pacing. There was a knock on the door shortly after.

"What is it Mom?" Tai asked.

"Just checking if you kids would like a drink or something? I just made some potato juice."

"No thanks Mom," he told her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, we're okay," said Kari.

"Okay, well tell me if you need anything. Oh, one last thing, how many more people are we expecting over?"

"Two," Tai told her (Sora and Izzy raised their eyebrows).

"Okay sweetheart, I'll you when they get here." And with that she closed the door.

"We're only expecting two people?" asked Izzy puzzled.

"Yeah," replied Tai with a sigh.

"How come? Who's not coming?"

"Matt isn't."

"Why not?" asked Sora.

"Because…. Because I didn't tell him we were meeting here."

"Why didn't you do that?"

"There's a good reason, trust me. I just want to wait until everybody's here before I explain everything."

"Oh, but I wanted to see Tsunomon," whined Yokomon speaking up now.

"Trust me guys, Tai's right," said Koromon backing his partner up. "What Tai's going to tell you, it's not something Matt or Tsunomon should hear."

"How come?" asked Izzy.

"Look, just wait okay," said Tai firmly.

With that the seven of them proceeded to wait in awkward silence.

…...

**10 mins later**

The doorbell rang.

"FINALLY," moaned Tai. "I'll go get it." He rushed out of them room and went to answer the front door. Opening it he was greeted with the sight of his loudest and most extravagant friend."

"Hi Mimi," he greeted.

"Hi Tai," she smiled. "Oh it's hot today, if I'd have now it was going to be so warm I'd have worn my other hat that gives me more shade."

"Look, come in," he ushered. Mimi stepped inside. She had a very large bag over her shoulder, so big it looked like it could carry a TV in it comfortably. Tai guessed what it was for.

"Everyone else is in here," he told her as he lead her into the bedroom. Once inside he closed the door

"Hi guys," she smiled to everyone else.

"Hi Mimi," they all said in unison.

"Oh, it's nice and cool in here," she gushed. She placed her bag on the floor and opened it up. As expected, her digimon popped out.

"Hi everyone," smiled Tanemon.

"Hi," they all said back.

"Okay, now we're just waiting on Joe and Bukamon," said Tai.

"Actually, Joe won't be coming," said Mimi. "He called me on my cell phone a little earlier and told me that all the trains to his side of the city our off so he can't get here. I guess we'll have to do it without him."

"Oh, bummer," sighed Tai.

"Who else are we missing? Matt and Tsunomon."

"No, they're not coming," Izzy told her.

"Oh? Why not?"

"I'll tell you, just sit down," said Tai. Mimi did as she was instructed and sat down next to Sora.

"Okay, since no one else is coming we should just get started," he began. "First off is this, Kari here is the eight digi-destined child. They all gasped.

"Kari? A digi-destined?"

"Yeah, show them Kari."

Kari smiled as she took her digivice out of her pocket and showed it to everyone.

"Neat huh?" she said.

"How did you get that?" asked Miyomon.

"Me, Koroman and Kari all went to the digital world," Tai explained. "We met with Gennai and he gave it to her."

"Well if Kari's a digi-destined where's her crest?" enquired Izzy. "And who's her digimon?"

"We don't know either," said Tai. "But Gennai said we'd find out about both later."

"What else Tai?" asked Sora. She knew what else was coming.

"Yeah, there's something else too. Something more important."

"What is it it?" asked Mimi.

Tai took a deep breath.

"I met TK," he told them.

They all gasped again.

"YOU MET TK!?"

"Yeah, Gennai took me, Koromon and Kari all to see him."

"Well, where is he?" asked Izzy. "What's he doing? Is he back here in the real world?"

"No. He's still in the digital world."

"How come?"

"Because… because…." He broke off. Koromon decided to take over.

"Because TK's changed," he explained.

"Changed?" asked Mimi. "How?"

"Like, he's WAY older," said the little digimon?

"Way older?" asked Sora confused.

"Yeah, he's not little anymore."

"How?"

"OF COURSE!" gasped Izzy now. "The time differences between our world and the digital world. Time here passes faster there."

"What do you mean?" asked Mimi who was very confused.

"Only a week may have passed in our world since we returned," Izzy explained. "But in the digital that week would have been far longer."

"How much longer?"

"Seven years," Tai told them grimly.

"SEVEN YEARS!?" Mimi gasped.

"Yeah. One year for every day. That's the time difference. To us TK's been in the digital world alone for one week. To him he's been there for seven whole years."

"Oh my…."

"That's why I didn't invite Matt," Tai explained now. "I don't know how I'm supposed to tell him all this. His little brother is now older than he is."

"And really angry," chimed in Koromon.

"Really angry?" asked Sora puzzled.

"Yeah, you haven't even heard the worst part yet," said Tai miserably. "I spoke to TK and had a real long talk with him. He's changed so much from being alone in the digital world all this time. He's nothing like the little sweet kid we all knew. Now he's a hothead with a grudge against us. He doesn't even like being called TK anymore, the digimon he lives with call him something else, Trowa I think."

"A grudge against us?" asked Mimi.

"The digimon he lives with?" asked Motimon.

"He changed his name?" asked Sora.

"Yes, yes and yes."

"What about Patamon?" asked Yokomon.

"TK and Patamon aren't together anymore," he said. "Apparently they fell out a while ago and don't speal much anymore. I don't where about in the digital world he is exactly. Instead TK lives with these two other digimon, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon."

"I know those two," gasped Tanemon. "They work for Myotismon."

"That's what I said," said Koromon. "I told TK but those two guys just denied it and he seemed to believe them."

"Anyway," Tai butted in now to continue his story. "TK told me that, can you believe this, that he doesn't want to be a digi-destined anymore. I asked him to back to the real world with us but he said no."

"HE SAID NO!?" asked Izzy in disbelief.

"Yeah, he doesn't want to know. He wants to stay in the digital world with his new friends. He doesn't want anything to do with us anymore or the battle against Myotismon."

"He won't come back?" Sora was finding this impossible to digest. That sweet little boy she loved so much, the little brother to the whole group, he know wanted nothing more to do with them.

The room was silent. They all couldn't believe what they'd just heard.

"How…. how…. are we going to explain this to Matt? And his Mom and Dad?"

"I don't know Izzy, I just don't know."

….

**Elsewhere**

"Gatomon, come here," demanded Myotismon.

"Yes master?" she asked.

"I have decided that I have another task for you," he said.

"What is it Master?"

"I want you to return to the digital world," he told her.

"What…. why?" she gasped.

"I want you to go back and keep searching for that child and his two lackeys."

"You mean the bearer of Hope?"

"Yes. That piece of vermin has been hiding from me in the digital world for years, he has constantly managed to slip through my fingers, too cowardly to face me without his fellow digi-destineds. Now though that he'll surely knows that I've left for the human world he may come out his hole. I want you to go back and search for him. And if you find him and those two traitorous fools who've been hiding with him all this time, you know what to do."

The cat digimon wasn't happy, she wanted to stay here in the human world and search for the other members of the digi-destined, not spend all her time looking for a needle in a haystack. She knew she had no choice in the matter though.

"Yes Master."

"Good."

….

**The digital world **

"So, the digi-gate is back open?" asked Patamon.

"Yes," replied Gennai.

"But TK still doesn't want to do anything about Myotismon?"

"I'm afraid not Patamon. I tried to talk to him but he I'm afraid he still hasn't come around."

"How can you be sure he EVER will come around?"

"I'm not. I brought Tai Kamiya to meet him but I'm afraid not even that made the boy see sense."

Patamon sighed sadly.

"I'm afraid that the TK I knew is gone."

"Maybe. Or maybe not."

"Well, what do we do now?"

"Patamon, I want you to go the real world and help your friends with the fight against Myotismon."

"But…. what about TK?"

"TK not taking part is a shame, but I still know you can make a difference without him.

"You do?"

"Of course Patamon. You're a wonderfully talented digimon. Just because you can't digimon with TK doesn't mean that you're of no use. But, you still have the digivice and crest don't you?"

Patamon nodded.

"Good. Take those with you. The others may still be able to use them."

"Okay," said the little digimon. "I'll go. It'll be wonderful to see everyone again after so long. Hopefully TK will still one day change his mind."

….

**The real world – Ishida apartment**

Matt and his parents were in the kitchen. He and his father were sitting at the table as his mother Nancy stood at the stove cooking them some stew for dinner. It was very surreal and strange, having a woman in the apartment cooking for them, not least it being his own mother (and for Hiroaki, his ex-wife). Nancy had been staying in the apartment with them ever since finding out about what had happened with TK. Right now the three of needed each for support because of their heartbreak.

"How much longer Mom?" asked Matt. His stomach was rumbling.

"Just a few minutes," she replied.

Hiroaki smiled from his chair. This was something he'd missed terribly. Having Nancy cook dinner whilst he and his hungry son waited patiently. This moment was almost like something out of a dream, the only thing preventing it from being complete was the absence of youngest son. Oh how little TK would have loves something like this.

Nancy stood over the stove stirring the stew slowly. This was so bizarre. It felt like something from a few years ago, her cooking his this kitchen for husband and her children. She'd been staying here the last few days, she couldn't bare to go back to her empty apartment and going near TK's room. She needed someone around her to help her through this. Thankfully, Hiroaki had been kind enough to let her stay here with him and Matt. She'd been staying in her older son's room whilst he'd slept on the couch.

"It's ready," she now declared. She poured the stew into three separate plates as Matt and Hiroaki watched. Nancy's hand began to shake though. She quickly managed to put the pot of stew down before dropping it. She then burst into tears.

"MOM!" gasped Matt standing up and running to comfort her. He gave a hug as she sobbed and she pulled him close in return. He and Hiroaki understood what had set her off. Three plates. Three plates of stew. Not four, like there should have been.

….

**Later**

The reunited family had since eaten their dinner and calmed down. Matt had gone to bed with Tsunomon early leaving an awkward Nancy and Hiroaki alone together in their old living room. Hiroaki had decided to open a bottle of wine and had poured Nancy a glass to help calm her down. He hadn't intended to have any himself (he wasn't a big drinker) but couldn't resist once he'd opened the bottle and smelt the scent.

The former married couple had spent several hours talking about old memories from when they'd been together, most of them involving their two boys. They'd reached the last family vacation.

"TK ate too much ice cream and got sick," laughed Hiroaki. "He threw up in the hotel pool and I remember having to jump in to fish him out and then take him to bed."

"The life guard wasn't pleased," smiled Nancy. "He was throwing up all night. And then the day after Matt got sunburnt and we'd ran out of sun-cream so we had to run around the town trying to buy some."

"Yeah," he smiled. "Good memories." He drained the last of his glass (his third). Nancy did the same (also her third).

Hiroaki then gave a long sigh.

"When we came back is when it went started going bad," he said sadly now.

"Yeah…." Was all she said in reply.

"Nancy, what happened to us?"

"Well I guess we just, grew apart….."

"How? One minute everything was fine. We had the boys and each other. The next thing I knew we were fighting over everything and anything."

"I guess that's just what happens to everyone eventually, people start to get on each other's nerves. The hours you worked didn't help either."

"Well, neither did the fact that that bastard from your office kept making moves on you."

"What!? Oh Hiroaki don't. Don't drag that up again."

"Well it's true isn't it Nancy? You knew full well what he was doing. He was trying to make a pass at you, knowing full well that we were married with kids."

"I've told you, that was never the case. It was all in your head. It was never like that between me and Andrew."

"I believe you when you say nothing ever happened with him but I know that he certainly tried it on."

"How do you know?"

"I saw him at that Christmas party Nancy, he was all over you. Putting his hands where he had no place putting them, on a married woman."

"Hiroaki, how many times? You got it all wrong. Completely wrong. He had too much drink and got a bit merry. That's all.

"Oh really? How come you didn't push him away then? I remember you were laughing about it."

"What are you trying to say!?" she demanded.

"You tell me," he shot back.

"Are you accusing me of enjoying having him do that to me?"

Hiroaki didn't answer, he merely frowned.

"WELL YOU'RE WRONG!" she said angrily. "I DIDN'T ENJOY IT AT ALL!"

He continued to frown. Nancy decided to go on.

"That said, could I be blamed if I had enjoyed it? Having a man touch me and treat me like I'm beautiful, it had been a while since I'd had that by that point."

That hit a nerve. Hiroaki found his voice again.

"What are saying?" he demanded.

"I'm saying that you pushed me away," she said. "All those hours you kept spending at work, leaving me with Matt and TK. It was soul-crushing. I wanted my husband to love me and hold me, instead all he wanted to do was spend every day and night in his office. Never mind how lonely and unloved I felt, as long as his work got down then everything was fine."

Hiroaki really was stunned by her outburst. He'd never known this was how she truly felt (it must have been the effect the wine had had on her). She continued.

"And look what happened. We divorced, my husband took one of my precious sons away and now Matt doesn't even want to know me. I know he blames me for what happened. And now I've lost my other son too, he's all I have in the world but now he's gone and there's no way I can find him and bring home."

She then began to cry. Hiroaki just store at her, shell-shocked. As the tears fell down her face and she tried to hold it together (but was failing) his mind raced. Nancy felt unloved, lonely, pushed away. That was why she'd divorced him. She thought he didn't love her anymore. How wrong could she be? Before he knew what he was doing he'd closed the distance between them and locked his lips onto hers, kissing her passionately (something he hadn't done in years).

Nancy was left stunned. Her eyes were wide open as he kissed her, her thoughts now racing a thousand miles an hour. She thought for a few seconds….. before closing her eyes and returning his kiss.

**OOOOOOH. Told you something good was coming didn't I? And more good is to come. Hope you enjoyed that chapter, I know the last few have been a bit of a drag. It's really going to get going from here on in now though, promise. Please rate and review.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hi guys Time for the latest chapter. Time to catch up with some old friends. Please rate and review, also forgive any mistakes.**

Trowa was out on the boat fishing and on this occasion he was alone. He'd told Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon that he wanted to be alone today so he "think about things in peace". Both his digimon friends were concerned for him, ever since he'd spoke with those other digi-destineds who's came by he hadn't been the same.

Trowa usually wasn't secretive but for the past few days he's barely spoken to either of them. Of course it must have been difficult to be confronted with something uncomfortable from your past but the way he was obviously bottling up his emotions couldn't have been good for him. They wished Trowa would open up and talk to them, about what he was REALLY thinking.

**In the boat, on the lake…..**

Trowa was dozing in the boat (as he often liked to do) with his hat tilted downwards over his eyes and his rod dangling in the water. Strangely enough, actually catching fish was what he liked least about coming out here on the boat. He instead loved the peace, the ability to lose yourself in your thoughts and dreams, it was perfect for helping him relax or forget his troubles. That was why he'd asked to come out alone today, he wanted time to himself to help get his mind together.

As he dozed he his mind thought kept thinking about something he'd tried so hard not to think about during all his years here in the digital world, his family and friends. What he'd said to Tai about how he feared his family wouldn't recognize or love him anymore if they saw him now, it was a fear he just couldn't get rid of. To him, it seemed a very genuine possibility, no matter what Tai had told him.

His mom and dad, what would they say if they saw him now. Aged fifteen and not eight. If he suddenly walked past them would they even look twice at him? Would they realise who he was without him having to tell them?

And him, what would his brother say to him after what had happened? His bigger brother wasn't bigger than him anymore, in fact, according to Trowa's calculations, he was older than him and all the other digi-destined kids now. They had all been just fourteen and would still be that age now back in the real world. Also, what would he, Trowa, say to his family? How would he be able to introduce himself to them after so long? How could he explain his age and growth to his parents and make them understand and accept it? How would he confront Matt with his anger and hurt for him breaking his promise? Oh yeah, THAT promise.

"I'll be back later TK," he'd said. "I promise."

Yet he and Gabumon never did come back. He just left him and Tokomon there on the water edge, without anybody to take care of them. Who knew if what Demi-Devimon had told him was true? It didn't change the fact that Matt had abandoned TK and left him to rot. That's how he still looked at it, all these years later. And it still hurt him very deeply.

"And what sort of life would it be?" Trowa thought. "Things would be nothing like they were."

"How would Mom be able to take care of me now that I'm 15 and not 8? How would people treat me? What about my life here with Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon? After everything they've done for me, I can't just pack up my bags and say 'see ya later, I'm going back to my family now'. It wouldn't be fair."

Trowa knew (even though they'd both never admit it) that both his digimon friends didn't want him to ever leave them and go back to the real world. He'd grown close to both of them, the three were very tight knit. They were like brothers to another, him like an adopted son or nephew to them, them like his crazy uncles or cousins to him. They were like blood, that's how much they all valued one another. If he did go back to the real world he'd have to leave them behind and he truly didn't want to do that.

"They've done everything for me," he thought. "Raised me, fed me, clothed and educated me. They've done everything I've ever needed or asked of them. They agreed to christmen with a new name and everything."

That was another issue, his name. Trowa couldn't ever seem to figure out what it was exactly that had made him want a new one in the first place all those years ago. He liked the name Takeru/TK. There was just something inside him that told him that he had to leave it behind, a chapter of his life he wanted to close and in doing so he had to pick a new name. He'd never actually asked Gotsumon where he'd thought of the name Trowa, what did it mean exactly? He'd liked it originally because he thought it sounded grown-up there was surely a reason that Gotsumon had suggested it (he reminded himself to ask about it later).

Getting back to the point, Trowa knew that if his parents found about this name change that they wouldn't be pleased. They'd insist on calling him TK, the name they'd given him, and that was something he didn't want in all honesty. He was big enough to make his own decision. It had also felt so strange when Tai had called him it earlier (and irritating whenever Gennai called him Takeru).

No, he'd made the right choice in refusing to go back he told himself. There was nothing for him in going back except awkwardness and bad memories. He was comfortable and had a good life here, why throw it away? His family would….would…. just have to accept it. And the other digi-destined kids would have to face Myotismon and the other evil digimon without him. He hated the forces of darkness but he was past the point of fighting them himself. He'd never liked fighting so why do it when he knew he didn't have to? His days of being a digi-destined and having a crest and digivice were behind him.

…...

**The real world**

Patamon was sat atop a building and he was staring at an apartment complex opposite the street. This was the block of apartments that Gennai had told him Matt lived with his father and Gabumon now too. He was trying to think about how best to approach this.

"It's been awhile since I them, or anyone from the group," Patamon thought. "It's going to be awkward talking to them. And how am I supposed to explain to them about TK? If they don't already know that is."

The little digimon sighed to himself.

"Maybe I should go speak to somebody else first? One of the other kids."

Patamon began to think now. If he wasn't go to go see Matt and Gabumon he only had one other option, Izzy and Tentomon because they lived in the same apartment building. Before he'd come here to the real world Gennai had told him where to find Matt (he'd told him where to find the apartment block and the actual apartment's number). He'd also told him that Izzy lived close by so Patamon decided to look for him.

He lifted off and began to fly around the building, circling carefully. Hopefully anybody who might look out their windows and see him would think he was just a large bird. He himself was glancing in as many windows as he could, hoping to catch sight of Izzy or Tentomon in one of them.

After several hours of fruitless searching Patamon was ready to give up. He wished he's brought TK's old digivice, it could have helped him greatly in his search by locking onto to any other nearby digivices. However, although he'd brought both digivice and the Crest of Hope here to the digiworld with him, he'd hidden them in safe place where nobody could get their hands on them.

"Oh this is pointless," he thought now. "I guess I'll just have to go to Matt and Gabumon."

As he thought this though the strangest coincidence imaginable happened. Just below him a patio door opened, and who should step onto the landing? Izzy and Tentomon!

"Whoa, who'd have called it?" Patamon asked himself.

Izzy and Tentomon had noticed him yet. They were talking about something.

"My computer's signal keep fading in and out Tentomon," explained Izzy. "Maybe the aerial out here on the landing has been knocked out of shape by the wind?"

"Well, why don't you see Izzy instead of asking poor old me?" Tentomon replied smartly.

Patamon smiled at hearing his friends' voices after so long. It was good to see them.

"Room for one more?" he asked swooping down to join them.

"What the….? WHAT!? PATAMON!?" gasped Izzy.

"PATAMON!" beamed Tentomon.

"Hi guys," smiled Patamon.

"Whoa, where did you come from?" asked Izzy composing himself.

"I've come from the digital world to see you and all the others," he said.

"The digital world…. "

"Yeah, where do you think I come from? The sewer?"

"No," laughed Izzy. "It's… it's really good to see you Patamon."

"Agreed," added Tentomon.

"Thanks," Patamon said again with another cheery smile. "It's great to see you guys again too."

The trio for the next few minutes exchanged pleasantries and had a bit of a catch up. Patamon asked about everyone else, Izzy and Tentomon asked about what Patamon had been doing in the digital world. That inevitably led to the subject of TK.

"We know about TK," Izzy told him.

"You do?"

"Yeah."

"How?"

"Tai told us."

"How does Tai know?"

"Because he went to digital world the other day. And Gennai took him to see TK."

"Oh…."

"Well, is it true Patamon? Is all this about him true?"

"Yes, sadly."

"How did it happen Patamon? You have to tell us."

"I still ask myself that Tentomon," said the little digimon sadly now. "TK just changed. It all started after Matt and Gabumon left us."

"Matt and Gabumon left you?" asked Izzy.

"Yeah," answered Patamon. "It's a long story guys."

"No, please tell us," Izzy urged. "My mom and dad went out and won't be back for a little while anyway so we have time. Go ahead, me and Tentomon want to know everything."

"Well okay…."

Patamon proceeded to explain everything that happened regarding him and TK in the seven years in which they'd been in the digital world. How Matt and Gabumon left and never came back. How Demi-Devimon had tricked TK. How TK and he and fallen out. How TK had gone to live with two digimon named Gotsumon and Pumpkinon. How he and TK had (kind of) made up but still didn't see each other very often. And why he'd now come here, to the real world.

"So you and TK still don't see each other much?" asked Tentomon.

"Not really. I last saw him about six months ago when he and his friends passed through primary village, that's where I've mostly been all this time. Helping Elecmon with the baby digimon. If TK didn't want me to take care of him anymore then I'll go take care of someone else."

"It's so crazy to think that the little boy we all knew has changed so much," said Izzy thoughtfully. "I'd love to get to meet him now for myself."

"I'm not Matt would," said Patamon sadly.

"Does he really hate him as much as Tai said?" Izzy asked.

"Yeah, he really does. He still believes that Matt and Gabumon left him in purpose. That's why he won't come back, he doesn't want to see them."

"What about you Patamon? Why have you come back even if TK won't?"

"Because I want to help you guys fight Myotismon. I may not be able digivolve but I still want to fight."

Izzy smiled.

"That's good to hear. We could certainly use you."

He then sighed.

"I guess I better go and tell Matt that you're here. He and his dad live just a few floors up."

"NO DON'T!" gasped Patamon.

"How come?" asked Tentomon.

"Because I don't want to tell him about TK. Or their mom or dad. It's too sad."

"I know what mean, Tai said the same. But still, he needs to find out eventually. Matt can't be the only one who doesn't know about his brother."

"Well, okay. But not now. Let's me tell them tomorrow. I need to rest now. Can I stay here with you guys tonight?"

"Of course."

…...

**Meanwhile…..**

Myotismon sat in his carriage, awaiting news from one of his evil minions. It didn't take long before Demi-Devimon arrived with it.

"Master, the plan has now been put into gear," he said.

"Good," said Myotismon shortly. "You've identified the digi-destineds' families?"

"Yes Master. We have them scoped out right now."

"Good. When I give the order round them up."

"Master, may I ask you something?"

"What it is?" he demanded. He hated it when his worthless lackeys questioned him.

"Why are going after their families? Wouldn't it be faster to just go after the digi-destined themselves?"

"No," said Myotismon. He oddly enough decided to explain his plan. "I want the digi-destineds crests. All seven of them. With the power of the crests I will be able to digivolve into my most powerful form and control both worlds. Those brats would never hand over their crests to me wilfully though. By kidnapping their families and threatening to destroy them I will leave them with no choice. They will have to surrender them to me."

"Truly a great plan Master," oozed Demi-Devimon. "Those kids will hand over those crests in a second when they find out you have their families. But, what about that kid still back in the digital world? He has one of the crests."

"I have someone working on it," Myotismon told him in a very scary tone.

…

**Hope you liked. Now you know Myotismon's plan. The get all the crests for himself and use them to digivolve. I'm taking several liberties here from the anime story arc, in this fic Myotismon doesn't know that there's an eighth digi-destined. There will be some more changes that I'll implement later too. Hope you enjoying it so far. **


	14. Chapter 14

**Time for a new chapter. Lots of detail and events in this one too. Please enjoy and forgive any mistakes that I've surely made.**

**Chapter 14**

Trowa had returned from his fishing trip and was back inside the cabin he shared with his two digimon friends. As the freshly caught fish he'd caught today sizzled away in the frying pan as Gotsumon cooked for dinner Trowa slipped out of the kitchen and into the over towards the living. In the middle of the mantelpiece which dominated this area of the cabin stood a large, full length mirror.

Trowa store at himself in silence, studying his own appearance meticulously. Gennai was right, he'd changed so much from the little kid who'd first come to the digital world. He still had that old green outfit he used to wear, it was packed away in draw somewhere. Now he wore completely different outfits.

He'd come across and collected many items of clothing during the last few years, and it still amazed TK how he'd found stuff like this here in the digital world (he couldn't think of any possible digimon he'd ever come across who could have made them). He'd found numerous shirts, vests, socks, underwear, pants, shoes and boots. A wardrobe full of everything a growing teenage boy could ask for. He usually just dressed depending on the weather. One item of clothing he was particularly fond of and wore often was his pair of dark brown cowboy style boots. He'd come across them a year ago in the castle of Gekomon and Otamamon. He liked them so much because as a child he used to love watching cowboys and Indians shows on TV and it was what all the cowboys wore. They just made him feel cool when he had them on is all. He was wearing them now and had been wearing them a few days before when he'd met Tai, he'd noticed his former friend checking them out.

One thing he didn't wear anymore was hats. He'd grown out of them as he'd got older. When he was little he used to wear a funny green one that looked slightly like a backwards cap only it wasn't. Nowadays he let the sun at his golden coloured hair (which he'd recently to an appropriate length after letting it grow for several years). He occasionally combed it, either back or down. The total opposite of Matt who used to always apply infinite amounts of gel to his. To Trow, it was all part about carving himself a new image. Not the small little crybaby with the cute outfit anymore, but the now older, tougher teenager who wore grown up clothing and looked cool. It was the reason for the new attitude, name and personality he had now.

He tried to imagine what would have been going through Tai and Agumon's minds when they first seen him again. It must have been a freaky sight, seeing him so grown up when to them they'd only seen him as a kid a few days before.

He finally pulled himself away from the mirror when Gotsumon called him that supper was ready. He sat down at the table with his two friends and began to pick at his food.

**Shortly after…. **

"What's the matter Tro?" asked Pumpkinmon. "You've barely touched you're fish?"

"What….. ? Oh nothing, just thinking."

"What were you doin' all day out in the boat on your own?"

"Thinking."

"Thinking? Do you do anything else?"

Trowa managed to raise a smile to that. Still witty as ever was Pumpkinmon.

"Look, Tro," began Gotsumon now. "Tell us the truth. Are you having second thoughts about not going back to your world?"

"What!? No, I'm not. It's just, seeing Tai again, it's made me think about a lot of things. Things I haven't thought about in a long time."

"Like your family?" suggested Pumpkinmon.

"….. Yeah," Trowa admitted.

"You want to go back and see them, don't you?" Gotsumon asked.

"Yes and no," he answered.

"What does that mean?"

"Yes because I haven't seen my mom and dad for so long and I've missed them. And no because I know seeing me….. like…. this….. (he gestured at himself) would upset them because they wouldn't understand. Plus I don't think I could keep my hands away from my brothers weasley, little neck."

The other two gave small smiles.

"Look Tro, buddy. If you want to go back and see them then just do it. You said the digi-gate is open again now right? So what's stopping you apart from the those bad thoughts you have in your brain?"

"Well, nothing I guess."

"Then what's the problem? If you want to see them, go see them. You don't even have to talk to them or let them know you're back. Just go watch them from a distance."

Trowa considered this suggestion. He had to admit, it made a fair bit of sense. The only real concern was, if he did go back and see them again, would he be able to resist the inevitable desire to reveal himself.

"I think I'll sleep on it, okay?" he announced after a while of giving it some thought.

"Sure, no problem."

With that Trowa stood up from the table (leaving his barely touced fish supper) and made his way over to his bedroom. It was a tiny room that contained only a single bed and closet full of his clothes. He undressed and threw himself down onto his mattress, his tired mind still full of thoughts about his loved ones and whether or not he should go see them. Fortunately, it wasn't look before he drifted off to sleep. His slumber didn't last long though.

…

**Later**

Trowa felt himself being shook away by one of his digimon friends.

"Wha…. Gotsumon? What is it? I'm bushed and want to sleep, what do you want?"

"Trowa, you've got to come outside quick and see this," explained Gotsumon breathlessly.

"Why? What is it?" Trowa asked suspiciously.

"just come see," answered Gotsumon running back towards the door. When he reached it he turned back to look at Trowa and beckoned him to follow.

"Come on, quick!"

Trowa yawned and got out of bed. Scooping up his clothes he quickly pulled them back on and hurried outside to join Gotsumon and see what it was he was fussing so hysterically over.

He stepped outside and saw Gotsumon standing next to Pumpkinmon, both of them staring up at the sky looking mystified. Trowa looked up too, and he got his answer as to what was going on.

There it was, the digi-gate, the portal of white light which led back to the human world, shining bright in the sky. He hadn't seen this sight in years.

"Whoa…." mouthed Trowa. "It really has re-opened for definite."

"Trowa," called Pumpkinmon from the down the lawn. "What do we do?"

"What?" Trowa called back. "How should I know?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth that the blonde began to feel a strange sensation. It was a sensation he'd felt before, felt the last time he'd seen the portal like this.

"Whoa….." he said as he felt his feet slowly leave the floor. He was drifting upwards.

"TROWA!" called Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon simultaneously. They both ran towards the friend, jumped up and each managed to grab one of his legs.

"WHAT'S HAPPENING!?" called Pumpkinmon from the bottom as he and Gotsumon each hung on for dear life (their weight wasn't enough to stop Trowa from levitating upwards towards the light.

"ISN'T IT OBVIOUS!?" Trowa called back. "THE PORTAL, IT'S TAKING ME BACK TO REAL WORLD!"

"OH DAMNNNNNNN!" screamed Gotsumon.

"YOU GUYS DON'T HAVE TO COME WITH ME!" Trowa told them.

"DON'T BE STUPID TRO, WE'RE YOUR BUDDIES. AND FRIENDS STICK TOGETHER!"

Trowa felt a tears form in his eyes.

"Thanks guys…."

"THANK US LATER!" yelled Pumpkinmon. "HERE WE GO!"

The three of them then entered the light. And passed through to the other side.

…...

**Even later….. **

All Trowa could remember was a blinding light and hitting something a hard thud. He'd blacked out and was now only just coming too. He opened his eyes and could make out the fuzzy image of the blue sky. He could also hear a lot of noise. A strange noise, a type of noise he'd not heard in a LONG time. It sounded like…. children. Human children running around and laughing.

He slowly sat up and tried to make head or tail of where he was. He looked down and was very relieved to see both Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon lying on the grass next to him. Both were still asleep. He then studied his surroundings, and got the fright of his life.

He was surrounded on all sides by people, human people of all ages. Children playing, adults walking around, people riding bikes, a couple of dogs with their owners, everything you could imagine. This must have been a public park, the must turned up back in the human world in a public park! After so long of not seeing another human being, Trowa found himself right in the middle of the most sociable place you could think of.

He merely sat open mouthed and stared as people passed him and the two digimon, simply going about their business. It was so much for him to take in. He was finally back.

(THUD). Trowa felt something hit him hard on the back of the head. He jumped to his feet in alarm to see who had hit him. He found it was only a soccer ball.

"Sorry mister," said a little boy running towards him nervously. "I guess I kicked it to hard. You and you're friends shouldn't really be sunbathing on the grass though."

"We're not sunbathing," Trowa said defensively.

"Oh well, whatever. Can I have my ball back?" asked the boy.

Trowa looked down at the ball at his feet. He gently kicked back to the boy.

"Thanks," answered the boy picking it up and running back to join his friends a few metres away. Trowa simply store after him.

After a while he looked back down at his friends.

"Hey guys, wake up!" he urged, gently nudging them both with his feet. Both Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon opened their eyes. They both then sat up and began to look around.

"Where the hell are we?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"We're in the human world," Trowa told them. "The world I'm from. We must have passed through the portal."

"And ended up here?" asked Gotsumon looking around.

"Yeah."

"Where are we? And who are all these people?"

"This must be a park or something. And these are just human beings like me. They're all just walking around, doing their own thing."

"Whoa….. this way far out."

"What do we do now Tro? Where are we supposed to go?"

Trowa thought long and hard about this. Now that he finally back in the human world, what was he to do with himself?

"Why don't we go find your folks?" suggested Gotsumon now. "They could help us out, couldn't they?"

"No, we're not doing that," Trowa told them firmly.

"Well, what do we do then?" asked Pumpkinmon.

Trowa just grinned at both his friends. He'd decided what to do now. Looking around taking everything and everyone in, he took a deep breath of air and declared;

"We're back in my town now guys. And now I'm older. Let's go have ourselves some fun!"

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon both smiled too now. That sounded like a pretty good idea to them.

….

**Meanwhile…. at the Izumi apartment**

"Izzy dear, you're breakfast is ready," called Mrs Izumi.

"Okay mom, I'm coming," Izzy shouted from his room.

Mrs Izumi then continued to walk along the hallway towards the letterbox to pick up today's morning mail. She scooped up the letters and walked back towards the kitchen. Her husband, Mr Izumi and Izzy's father (adopted) was sitting at the table drinking his coffee and reading his newspaper before work.

Mrs Izumi flicked through the mail. Bill. Bill. Letter from the library. Bill. Competition winner. Wait? Competition winner? Where was that from she wondered? She ripped open the letter and read it thoroughly.

"Darling," she asked. "What's this?"

She passed the letter to her husband who put down the newspaper to read the letter form himself. It read;

"HELLO! Mr and Mrs Izumi, we are pleased to inform you that you have won a fabulous prize! A free, 5-course meal at the best restaurant in town, Bennington's. You have won this prize courtesy of your son Izzy, who placed 1st in the school science fair. He himself will also receive a prize but we also have taken the liberty of handing out a prize to you, his parents. You're son clearly didn't become so smart on his own. Your table is booked for 7pm tonight, please join us at their where we will hand you Izzy's prize in person. We look forward to seeing you.

Yours Sincerley,

Oikawa High School"

"A free meal? All because Izzy won a science fair?" asked Mr Izumi confused.

"It seems strange they'd give us, his parents, such a fabulous prize," agreed his wife. "I don't even remember Izzy telling us there was a science fair anyway."

"Who it is were supposed to meet there at this restaurant?" asked Mr Izumi, studying the letter thoroughly.

"I don't know, the school principal?" Mrs Izumi suggested.

"I'm not sure. Well, what do you think? Shall we go?"

"I'm not sure Masami, this whole thing sounds strange."

"It does say that they would give us a personal prize for Izzy."

"What do you think it could be?"

"I haven't got the foggiest idea."

"Well, what do you want to do?"

Mr Izumi leaned back in his chair and thought hard. He eventually made a decision.

"Okay Yoshie, here's what we'll do. We'll go after I get back from work tonight. Don't get dressed up or anything though, if this turns out to be a joke or something then we can just come straight home. Don't tell Izzy about this either. Don't let him get his hopes up about this supposed prize it says he's going to be getting only to find out that later that it was all a hoax."

"Okay," she nodded in agreement. She then looked down at the breakfast she'd cooked her son and remembered something.

"Izzy," she called again. "Come on son, you breakfast is going cold.

Izzy's room.

"Sorry guys, I gotta go for a few minutes. You guys just stay in here under the bed okay?"

"Sure thing Izzy," Tentomon replied.

"Make sure you eat it all Patamon," said cheerfully.

Izzy smiled.

"Okay, I'll eat my breakfast and then we'll go over to Tai's. Let him and everyone else know you're here Patamon."

"Okay."

**Elsewhere….**

"Did all of the digi-destineds parents receive those letters?" demanded Myotismon.

"Yes master," croaked Demi-Devimon.

"And what about the other two? The mother and father of the brothers. Did they each receive the notes I wrote? The notes regarding their youngest?

"Yes master."

"Good," Myotismon laughed evilly. "It's all starting to fall into place. By tonight, all the digi-destined crests will be mine!"

**Hope you're enjoying it. So, TK's back in the real world (but no one else knows yet), as is Patamon (only Izzy and Tentomon know as of now), Myotismon has a very evil plan already in motion and there's a very explosive situation brewing. What are you thinking so far? Are you enjoying the story? Because there's more to come soon. A reviewer requested that I go into more detail about TK's appearance now he's older so that's what I did at the start of this chapter. Don't ask me to go into detail about how he got his new clothes, he just did okay? It's not the same outfit he wore in 02, I never cared for that personally, especially the hate. Physically though he looks the same as he did in 02, just different outfit if you can picture it (I specifically but the cowboy boots in cause I think they're awesome and look really cool on a person. Just a personal anecdote I thought I'd slip in like I do in all my fanfics). TK is also still older now he's back in the human world by the way, no going back to being a little kid for him. That would ruin the plans I have for this going forward.**

**Next chapter coming soon. In the meantime, PLEASE RATE AND REVIEW. It's highly appreciated thanks.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Time for chapter 15 now. Lots to happen here so buckle yourself in, this one is going to be very action packed. Decided to have some cheeky fun with a few characters too. Please enjoy (and forgive any mistakes).**

**Chapter 15**

**Ishida Apartment**

It was very early in the morning and the sun was only just rising. The door to Hiroaki's bedroom slowly opened and a pair of eyes peered out. They weren't Hiroaki himself eye's though. They were those of his ex-wife.

Nancy had spent the night with her ex-husband in his room after their kiss last night. They'd been spent several hours reminiscing about their marriage and the good memories they shared, particularly the ones that involved their sons. After a glass too many they'd kissed, passionately.

Whilst she'd been here Nancy had been staying in Matt's room whilst he and Tsunomon shared the couch. Last night though her son had gone to bed early and forgotten about the arrangement. Hiroaki was never going to make his beautiful ex-wife spend the night on an old sofa. So, whilst their lips were still locked, he'd scooped her up in his arms and carried to his room where they'd spent the night together. Just like back when they'd been married. Only now was Nancy emerging.

She looked down at her watch, it told her it was 6:15am. Nobody else, her husband or her son were awake yet. Wearing a dressing gown, she slowly opened the bedroom door and slipped out. Making sure not to wake her husband and that her son wasn't awake in his room yet, she tip-toed over to the couch and settled herself down. When Matt woke up he'd see her here and think this was where she'd spent the night. She didn't want him to know that she'd been in Hiroaki's room.

….

**Later…..**

Matt and Tsunomon had just left the apartment. He'd said was going over to his friend Izzy's who also lived in this complex. Nancy was getting ready for work, as was Hiroaki. They knew they had to talk though.

Both had been acting nervously around each other all morning, but Matt was none the wiser. Hiroaki had woken up to find his ex-wife not sleeping alongside him but instead on the couch out in the living room. Matt had woken up shortly before and both he and Nancy were cooking breakfast.

"Nancy," he said now approaching her as she brushed her hair. "We need to talk."

"I know," she said. "We'll talk when we both get back later. I don't think Matt suspects anything."

"Okay," Hiroaki said. "We'll talk later. For now er…. just…. have a good day." He added that last part nervously.

"Sure," she said, giving a nervous smile herself. "You have a good one too."

"Hopefully Matt will have news about the digital world too when he comes back from his friend's." He then headed towards the door and left the apartment.

….

**Flashback - Last night…..**

"You want us to do what Tro!?" spluttered Pumpkinmon.

"Get me that jacket," Trowa said plainly.

"Get you that jacket?" asked Gotsumon.

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Because I like it and it would look good on me."

He was referring to a leather jacket that was hanging on the back of man's chair in the diner they were in. Trowa, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon had spent the whole day walking around Oikawa, taking in the sights (and getting themselves into little bits of mischief). Now they'd stopped to have something to eat. And Trowa had spotted something he wanted.

"Why do you want us to grab it? Go get it yourself."

The man who the jacket belong to was looked rather scary and obviously wouldn't appreciate a teenager and his two little friends trying to steal his coat.

"Because you two are faster than me. Come on, I'll distract him and you two swipe it when he's not looking. I know it's stealing but I'm freezing in just this (he gestured to his thin shirt)."

"I thought you said a minute ago you liked it?"

"Er….. I do," Trowa smiled nervously. "I like how warm it looks. Come on guys, please?"

"Oh okay," Gotsumon said eventually.

…

**Later….. **

Wearing his new leather jacket, Trowa was in an arcade with Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon, blowing what money they had on a video game machine.

"Argh, DAMN!" he seethed as he was killed and the message "GAME OVER" flashed across the screen for the umpteenth time.

"Come Trowa pal, you've had long enough on this wacky thing," declared Gotsumon.

"Come on guys, one more go," Trowa pleaded. "I was so close that time. Give me another quarter and I'll win this time."

"You must have used about 50 of these already, we barely have anything left," Pumpinkmon told him, referring to a little pouch he was holding that contained only a few quarters now (they had found a wallet with some cash in it inside the jacket they'd swiped for him).

"Yeah well, I'm having fun. Don't I deserve that?" Trowa asked.

"Sure but…."

"Then just give me a coin!"

Pumpkinmon reluctantly reached into the pouch, pulled out another quarter and handed it to Trowa. The teen then quickly put into the video game slot and the game quickly started up again.

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon just shook their heads.

…

**Even later….. **

After finally managing to pry their friend away from the arcade, Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon walked with Trowa down the town centre. According to the clock located on one of the tallest buildings it was 7:30pm.

"Where should we go now?" asked Gotsumon.

"I dunno," answered Trowa. "Unless things have changed massively since I've been away, I don't think there's much you can do with er…. (he counted the last few remaining coins they had)…. $2 and 25 cence."

"Well who's fault is that?" asked Pumpkinmon dryly.

"Hey come on, let it go," said Trowa defensively (he'd never managed to win the addictive arcade game after all).

"We don't even have enough to get something to eat," said Gotsumon.

"Can't we just steal something?" asked Trowa.

"I think we've done enough stealing for one night," remarked Pumpkinmon, eyeing Trowa's jacket as he spoke.

"Fair enough," Trowa admitted. His attention was then caught by something else though. It was sign and it read;

"ALL NIGHT GYM. LADIES ONLY."

"I know what I want to do," he said now, sounding very mischievous.

"What is it?" both is digimon friends aske in unison.

"I want to go in there," he told them, pointing the gym sign out to them both.

"But the sign says girls only," said Pumpkinmon now.

"I know," Trowa answered. "But it's not a work out I'm interested anyway."

"What then?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"Oh…. Tro…. no…." Gotsumon had worked out what Trowa wanted to do. Part of him wanted to scold his friend for his idea, the other wanted to laugh hysterically.

"Yes," said Trowa grinning.

"WHAT!? WHAT IS IT!? TELL ME!" whined Pumpkinmon to his friends.

"Tro here wants to watch some girls in their…. embarrassing moments," Gotsumon answered mysteriously.

"What does that mean?"

"It means I'm going to sneak in there and hide in the locker rooms," Trowa answered bluntly.

"Huh? Why?"

"Because dummy, it will be funny."

"Well okay, but how are you going to get in?"

"Pumpkinmon, you know me. You know that I get in anywhere if I put my mind to it."

…

**Several minutes later….. **

Trowa was indeed now inside the locker room of the all ladies gym. He'd snook in through the back door which he was surprised to find was unguarded. He told Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon to wait outside by the back door and keep watch. He knew bringing them inside with him would only increase his chances of getting caught.

He quickly managed to find the locker room, he was delighted to find it was empty and quickly hid inside one of the empty lockers. There were little slits in the door which allowed him to see outside into the room.

"This has to be my best idea ever," he thought to himself happily.

The reason Trowa doing what he was doing was a fairly straight forward one. He was a teenage boy, who was right in the midst of puberty, who'd had no contact with other human beings for years and now wanted to live a little now that he was back. Long story short, he wanted to see a girl naked. Period.

What was so wrong with that? He was now at the age body and brain were changing. His sexual hormones were coming into play and were driving him wild. Recently, back in the digital world, he'd been fantasizing a lot about what it would be like to go back to the human world and get a girlfriend. He was sick of being the only human he knew, he was of sick of being secretly lonely and yearning for human contact again, man or woman.

This idea to him had just been a brain flash and seemed like it was too good not to try. That's he was doing this, no matter how wrong it felt. Hell, it was better than sitting out on boat fishing all day or blowing money in an arcade on video games.

He wasn't waiting long when he heard the sound of multiple voices approaching. He watched as about half a dozen girls (all wearing towels. They must have come from the showers) came into the locker room. They all looked a few years older than him, about 17 or 18. And all of them were stunningly beautiful.

"Alright girls, that great work out," said one of them. "We knock 'em dead tomorrow."

"Right on Cindy," replied another.

"I can't believe the big game is tomorrow," said another now. "I'm so nervous."

"Don't be," said the brunette, Cindy. "We're all going to do fine."

And then, it seemed in unison, all of the girls took of their towels, exposing their naked bodies in all their glory. Nothing was left to the imagination. And Trowa had the perfect view.

He looked at each one of them up and down, completely mesmorized. He'd seen the truly fantastic sights in his time in the digital world, but the one he had no one topped all of them. By far. He felt a lot of movement downstairs too.

The girls continued their conversation, completely unaware that they were all being gawped at by a peeping tom. Trowa wasn't paying attention to anything there were saying though.

"Do you think Chuck Miles likes me?" asked one of them.

"What makes you think that?"

"He asked to speak to me at the game tomorrow night."

"Maybe he's going to ask you out?"

"(Gasp) You think?"

"Yeah. Why, would you say yes if he did?"

"Of course I would."

"Well let's hope then."

The girls all proceeded to dry themselves off whilst each opening their lockers and taking out their gym backs. Each girl pulled out a cheerleader uniform and some casual clothes. One girl, Cindy, was standing very close to Trowa's hiding place wearing nothing at all. She was looking at herself in a mirror.

"Do you guys think I've got fatter?" she asked her friends.

"No, of course not Cindy. Your smoking."

"Yeah, any guy would kill to have you as their girlfriend."

"You got that right," whispered Trowa under his breath. This Cindy girl now had his complete attention as she inspected every inch of her body in the mirror. Trowa just leered at here through the locker slits, like a predator stalking its prey.

After several more minutes the cheerleading team had changed into the casual clothes and were packing up to leave. Trowa was disappointed that his free peep show was nearly over.

"How are you getting home Amber?" one of the girls asked another now.

"A cab," she replied. "I don't want to get on a bus now. This is right about the time all the creeps come out."

"Yeah, you're right. I think I'll call my dad and ask him to come pick me up," said Cindy.

(Sneeze).

Trowa had sneezed in the locker. He'd tried desperately to hold it in for a while, the dust in this old locker had really started getting to him. It has eventually managed to slip out though. And he knew instantly that he was in trouble.

"What was that!?" said one of the girls now looking around (they'd all heard it).

"I dunno, it came from over there," said the girl called Amber. She pointing directly towards the locker he was hiding in. Slowly one girl began to approach the locker, her hand outstretched.

"DAMN! DAMN! DAMN!" Trowa thought panicking. He was about to be rumbled. What should he do? Wait for her to open the door and find him or open it himself and make a run for it?

Before he could decided however the girl reached him. She grapsed the handle and slowly pulled the door open.

"Crap….." was all he could think as he was exposed. Cue the screams.

"(Screams) PERVERT! PERVERT!" they all roared in unison upon seeing him. "PERVERT IN THE LOCKER ROOM! (Screams)."

…

**Outside….. **

"What's that noise?" asked Pumpkinmon.

"I think Tro," been rumbled said Gotsumon sadly.

"What do we do!?" asked Pumpkinmon panicking.

"I dunno," answered Gotsumon. "Let's just give it a minute."

They were only kept waiting for 10 seconds or so when Trowa himself burst through the back, running as fast he could.

"RUN GUYS!" he roared, not even looking back. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon did as they were told, both of them starting to run too. Just in completely different direction from where Trowa had ran.

Trowa was sprinting down the street, as fast as his legs could carry him. He could hear the shouts of of; "stop that kid" from the other end of the street where he'd come from. He just wanted to get away from the scene of the crime by any means necessary. He finally decided to quickly look over his shoulder to see if anyone was following him. No sooner had he done so did he feel a thump of pain to the back of his head. His legs immediately gave way and he collapsed onto the pavement.

Sprawled on his back, he looked up to see the sight of a frowning police officer standing over him. That was his last image he remembered before blacking out of the whack.

…

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon watched as apparent groggy Trowa was put into the back of a car by a policeman. There was quite a crowd watching and they were able to watch from a distance in amongst everybody. Their friend had obviously been caught.

"Dammit, now what do we do!?" asked Pumpkinmon angrily.

"I dunno," answered Gotsumon. "It looks like they're taking Tro to jail. And that leaves us alone in this strange place."

….

**Earlier in the day.**

Hiroaki had arrived in his office for work at the Fuji TV station with his mind still racing from thought of last night and this morning. He'd slept with his ex-wife and didn't know what to think. Was it just a drunken fling? Was it just out of each other's need for mutual comfort? Or was the beginning of a possible reconciliation. He just couldn't decide what to make of it.

"She seemed a little off this morning," he thought. "I hope she isn't angry and doesn't think I took advantage of her. It wasn't meant to be like that."

He arrived at his desk, his head still spinning. He found a letter on top his desk. His mind was still elsewhere so as he picked the letter up and opened it he wasn't really paying attention. What was written inside the letter though grabbed his attention though alright. It damn near sent his brain into overdrive. It said;

"Hiroaki Ishida. I know you know about digimon and the digital world. I have information about your youngest son, Takeru. Meet me tonight at Bennington's restaurant tonight. Meet me there at 7pm tonight to hear more. Tell NO ONE and come alone."

He read the letter over and over again about a dozen times. Somebody wanted to talk to him and they knew something about TK. Perhaps something about how to bring him home. He began sweating profusely, unable to think straight.

"Hiroaki, are you okay?" asked one of his colleague noticing his apparent change in demeanour."

"Huh, what Claire?" he asked now, coming back to reality. "Yeah, I 'm fine thanks. Just a bit under the weather that's all. I'll be okay though.

"I'll get you a coffee," she smiled. "I was going to get me and Richie one anyway."

"Thanks," he smiled. He quickly began to frown again though. Who was this letter off? How did they know about digimon? What did they know about his son TK? What should he do?"

He eventually calmed himself down and decided that he'd go to this restaurant tonight to me with this person. He wouldn't know them but they'd surely know him when he arrived. He also decided not to call Nancy or Matt and tell them about this. The letter had specifically told him to tell no one and come alone. This person he was going to meet could potentially be dangerous, he didn't want to put either of them (or potentially little TK) in harm's way. He proceeded to go through the rest of his day on auto-pilot, his mind racing about the letter, this meeting, Nancy, TK and Matt. Little did he know, that across town in her office, his ex-wife had received the exact same letter addressed to her.

….

**OOOOOOOHHHHH. Action-packed chapter eh? Lot's happened there. Thought I'd have some fun with this chapter, Trowa spying on some girls was something I couldn't resist putting in there and I had fun writing it. I wrote that to again emphasise how he's changed. He's not a little kid anymore. Now he's a mischievous little scally wag who's right in the middle of his teens. You can imagine being him and being curious couldn't you? Hehe.**

**Anyway, next chapter or two is where it all truly kicks off. Whilst TK/Trowa is off being a naughty boy The parents and the rest of the digi-destineds are clearly being led into trap and no one is any of the wiser. Hope you're enjoying this story as much as I am writing it.**

**PLEASE RATE AND REVIEW, IT'S VERY MUCH APPRECIATED.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Time for the next chapter. If you think lot's happened in the last chapter, wait till you read this one. It's all starting to kick off!**

**Forgive any mistakes and enjoy.**

**Chapter 16**

Trowa was sat in a dark room all by himself at the police station. He'd been arrested and brought here after being caught some police officer he'd literally ran into. Now he was waiting for someone to come and talk to him and likely tell what the charges against him were. He wasn't concerned about though, he was more interested in what had become of Gotsumon and Pumpkin. The two digimon had been behind when he was running and he had no idea where they could be now. They'd never been to the human world before, they'd be completely lost without him. He hoped he'd be let go soon, purely so he could find his friends and make sure they were okay. Who knows what trouble they could get themselves into without him?

Finally, after what had seemed like an eternity, the door opened and in stepped two people. A man and a woman. The man was another police officer who stayed by the door, the woman was wearing important looking clothes and she came and sat down opposite him.

"Hello," she said with a small smile. "Can you please tell me your name young man?"

Trowa merely stared at her for a few moments, deep into her green eyes, trying to size her up. She had a good poker face though, he could detect nothing. He eventually decided to just play it safe and lie. He thought of the first name that came into his head.

"Joe," he said eventually in a bored tone. She nodded and wrote it down on a clip board with some documents she had with her.

"Alright Joe," she began. "My name is Linda. Now please tell me how old you are."

"Sixteen," he lied again. "Are you a lawyer or something?" he now asked.

"No I'm not," she answered. "I'm a social worker and I'm here to talk to you about what happened."

"A social worker?" he asked confused.

"Yes," she replied. "Because you're underage you cannot be charged with a criminal offense of voyeurism like an adult would be. Instead you're going to be cautioned but I'm going to have to speak to both you and your parents."

At mention of his parents Trowa swallowed hard. What would he do now?

"You can't speak to my parents," he said dryly, trying to get an excuse ready.

"Why not?" she asked as he expected.

"Er…. (he was struggling). Because…. I don't know them."

"You don't know them?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"They abandoned me," he half-admitted with a real hint of anger in his voice which helped him sound genuine.

The social worker made another note on her clipboard and then said;

"A guardian then?" she asked.

"No," he merely replied.

"No guardians either?" she asked suspiciously.

"No…. er….. I ran away," he said a little less than convincingly.

"You ran away?"

"Yes."

She sighed and made yet more notes. Eventually she looked up to speak to him again.

"Okay Joe, I'm afraid you're going to have to tell me the name and phone number of whoever looks after you. We need to speak to them."

"No," he merely said again.

Linda the social worker was starting to get annoyed with Trowa now. She stood up from here chair and said in a very authorative tone.

"Well until you decide to stop being childish Joe and give us a name and number for us to contact I'm afraid we cannot let you leave this building. You have arrested for a criminal offense, a very serious one. Peeping in the ladies' changing room is a very serious crime that is taken very seriously. You will remain in detention at this centre until you decided to co-operate with us. In the meantime, I'm sure whoever it is who takes care of you will be sick with worry. Bear that in mind whilst I leave you to think things over."

And with that the social turned on her heel and walked towards the door. She exited and was followed by the guarding police offer. Trowa heard the sound of key in a lock shortly after the door had been closed. He truly wasn't going anywhere.

"Oh damn…" was all he could think. He was in a very tight spot indeed.

…

**Izzy's apartment earlier in the day.**

Matt and Tsunomon where on their way to Izzy and Tentomon's apartment. They'd left there's early this morning, not wanting to have to face the awkwardness that existed between them and Matt's mom and dad. He still hadn't got used to being around both of them. When he reached Izzy's door he rang the bell.

"That must Matt and Tsunomon," said Izzy looking up from his computer.

"Well, don't just sit there Izzy, go let them in," Tentomom told him.

"My mom will answer it, I told her Matt was coming over," Izzy explained. He then turned towards Patamon.

"Look Patamon, I don't mean this to be rude or anything but I think you better clear out of here for a while."

"How come?" asked Patamon. "I want to see Matt and Tsunomon."

"I know but I don't thing Matt would have the best reaction if he saw you. He'd lose his mind with worry if you told him about TK. I think it would be better if he not know anything, at least not quite yet."

"Well, if you say so," answered the little winged digimon (though he was slightly upset at being asked to leave).

"Izzy, your friend Matt is here," called his mother from the hall.

"OKAY MOM!" Izzy shouted in reply. He urgently turned back to Patamon.

"Look Patamon, just make yourself scarce for a few hours. We're going to speak to Matt now and arranage another meeting with everyone else for tonight. You can introduce yourself and explain everything then."

"Okay," he replied hopping towards the window. The three of then heard the sound of heavy boots approaching from down the hall. Matt would come in any moment.

"Go find TK's crest and digivice and use it to find us later. It will lead you to where we'll all meet," he told him.

"Okay, see you guys tonight," Patamon said finally before hopping out of the window and away. No sooner did he do so that Izzy's bedroom door opened and a blonde figure carrying his own digimon walked in.

"Hi Izzy, hi Tentomon," said Matt wearily.

"Hi guys," said Tentomon cheerfully. Izzy just nodded.

The four exchanged some small talk before getting down to business. Most of it was just Matt letting out all his continued grief and stress about TK's absence and his parents.

"My mom has been staying the apartment with us since she found out," he explained. "To say it's been awkward would be the understatement of the century."

"Why, do you and your mom not get along or something?" asked Izzy. "Or is it her and your dad?"

"No, she and dad get along okay," Matt replied. "Their divorce wasn't nasty or anything."

"What about her and you?" Izzy asked.

Matt sighed. This was a topic he didn't like discussing.

"I dunno, it's just…. awkward is all."

"How come? She's your mom Matt."

"I know it's just….. (sigh). We just don't see each other very often. She lives on the other side of town and I never visit. I normally only ever see her when I drop off TK."

Izzy nodded, understanding this was a painful subject for his friend to talk about. He wondered if Matt had ever talked about this before to anyone seeing as he was so withdrawn and secretive. He made one final comment about it.

"Well your business is your business Matt but things really shouldn't be tense between you and your mother of all people. She surely loves and cares for you just like she does little TK. You don't have to push her or anyone else away when you're upset like this."

Matt didn't reply. He just store down at the floor but he was thinking hard about what his wise friend had just told him. Izzy decided to change the subject.

"Anyway, I asked you guys over here because there's been a few developments."

"What developments?" asked Tsunomon from the bed.

"Izzy thinks there may be a way to reopen the digi-gate," said Tentomon, remembering what he'd been told to say.

"You have!?" asked Matt now looking up from the floor.

"Well… maybe," replied Izzy in a cautious tone (he was deliberately holding back the full picture he'd been told Patamon). He felt awful for not telling his friends the truth. Matt and Tsunomon were now the only digi-destineds who didn't know the truth about TK and they were the ones who deserved to know the most. It was them who were being affected most.

"What do you know Izzy?" demanded Matt. "If there's any chance we can re-open the portal and go back to the digital world we have to do it. We have to go and get TK."

"I know Matt, I know. Just let me explain."

Izzy (with help from Tentomon) proceeded to tell Matt and Tsunomon as much of the truth as they could. That they'd received information from who they think was Gennai that Myotismon was on his way here to the real world to cause trouble.

"We think Myotismon may have a found a way to open the digi-gate up again from the digital world," he explained. "If he does then there's a chance TK could come back through the portal too. Or someone could go through and bring back."

"When is happening?" asked Tsunomon.

"We're not sure," replied Izzy.

"Myotismon, there's no end to his evil!" said Matt angrily. "first he tries to enslave the digital world with the help of lackeys like Devimon and Etemon, now he wants to come here to our world. We have to stop him!"

"Exactly!" said Tentomon emphatically.

"We still go and find TK first though," Matt stated firmly now. "My brother takes all precedence. As soon as that portal opens we go back to the digital world and find TK. Once we've got him safe, then we'll worry about fighting Myotismon."

Izzy just nodded, still feeling bad for not telling Matt the truth. It would surely crush both him and his mom and dad when they learnt the truth about what had become of TK.

"For now though, we need to start planning ahead," he stated. "You guys are the first ones we've told about this, we need to inform the others too. We need to arrange a meeting. A meeting for tonight."

"Okay," Matt nodded. "I'll go back to my apartment, get my phone book and we can start calling everyone to arrange something."

…...

**Later…..**

Bennington's restaurant was located right in the heart of Oikawa's city centre. This area was always very busy, especially on a Friday evening like this. Hiroaki had left work early but had not returned home to see Matt or Nancy. He merely left a phone message on his own answering machine explaining that he needed to stay late. He hoped him not being there would give Nancy and Matt some time together, the two needed to repair their mother-son relationship. His own chat with Nancy about last night would have to wait. For now, he was going to this meet this anonymous messenger who had information about TK.

Nancy was making her way to Bennington's restaurant too. She'd received an identical note at her office telling her to come here alone to be told about TK. She'd not gone back to Hiroaki's apartment. She'd left a phone message on Hiroaki's cell phone telling him that she had to work late and would be back later. Unbeknownst to her, in his hurry to leave his office Hiroaki had left his cell phone behind. She was nervous about meeting this anonymous person, he could be anybody and what was it he knew about TK? She had to know if her little baby boy was alright.

Every other parent of the digi-destineds had also been summoned to this meeting place under various different pretences. It was all a part of Myotismon's master plan.

**From nearby, the evil digimon surveyed the scene.**

"Master, master," called Demi-Devimon approaching. "Master, all of the parents have arrived . We're ready to go."

"Good," Myotismon smiled. "Now go over to Oikawa park. You will find those digi-destined brats there. Tell them to come here immediately. In the meantime, I'll introduce myself to there parents."

With that he swooped down from atop the building he was sitting on (closely followed by his minions).

**Inside the restaurant**

Nancy looked around as she entered. The restaurant was surprisingly empty, only a few people were here. She looked around and tried to see anybody who could possibly be the person she was meeting with. She quickly focused on a man standing at the bar alone. He looked familiar.

"Hiroaki….." she whispered under her breath. She quickly made her way over to him.

"Hiroaki, she said (he jumped out of his skin). "What are you doing here!?"

"Nancy…." he said completely lost for words. He hadn't expected to see her here. Not at all.

"Answer me, what are you doing here!?" she demanded.

"I'm meeting someone," he admitted.

"Meeting somebody?"

"Yes," he said. "What are you doing here?"

"Er…. she stuttered. "I'm…. I'm…. meeting someone."

"Didn't you get my message?" they both said in unison now. They both resisted the urge to laugh. Hiroaki eventually spoke first.

"Who are you meeting?" he asked.

"Who are YOU meeting?" she countered.

"I asked you first," he replied.

"Erm….." she stuttered, struggling to think of something to say. She eventually just decided to tell him the truth, he was TK's father after all. He deserved to be in on this meeting too.

"I'm meeting someone who says they have information about TK," she explained. "I got..."

"A letter at work from an anonymous person," he finished for her.

"How did you know that?" she asked astonished.

"Because I got a letter telling me to come here too Nancy," he told her. She just stood there, open mouthed.

At this moment, a piercing scream came from the kitchen. Everyone (including Hiroaki and Nancy) turned to look at the door which lead to the kitchens. It burst open and chefs came running out, looks of terror on their faces.

"What's going on?" shouted Mr Kamiya (Tai and Kari's father) from a table near the wall. He'd come here with Yuuko (Tai and Kari's mother).

Myotismon then emerged from the kitchen, surrounded by Phantomon and dozens of Bakemon.

"Monsters!" roared Mr Tachikawa (Mimi's father).

"No you foolish humans," scoffed Myotismon. "We are digimon, from the digital world." No one else understood this, they were all terrified. Hiroaki and Nancy though, they knew what he was talking about.

"We are here to take your world. Each of you has been summoned here by me. You see, every one of has children. And those children are what's known as the digi-destined. Humans sent to the our world, the digital world to foil us in our plans. Now I've come here to your world, I'm taking the battle to your children."

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MY SONS!?" demanded Hiroaki angrily. He wanted to know what these monsters had possibly to TK and/or Matt. Nancy just clung to his arm tightly.

"You're the father of two young brothers are you not?" Myotismon smiled.

"YES!" Hiroaki answered fierily.

"You oldest son fled back here to your world with the rest of these blasted children," he said to everyone in the room. "Your other, the younger brother, is the only one who remained back in the digital world. And even then, he's spent years hiding away instead of standing up to face me. He's truly a coward." His tone was very snobbish and mocking. He then moved onto the big picture.

"None of you leaving here," he declared with an evil laugh. The Bakemon the quickly moved around, blocking the exits and shepherding everybody in the centre of the room. The men all tried to fight them away but it was no good. Before long all the parents and several of the resturant staff who'd unluckily been caught up in this were pushed into a tight circle in the the centre of the room, completely surrounded.

"WHAT IS IT YOU MONSTERS WANT!?" demanded Mrs Takenouchi (Sora's mother) trying to hold herself together. She was the only parent who'd come alone (her husband, Sora's father, lived far away) apart from Joe's brother Jim.

"That is fairly simple," Myotismon smiled now. "I want something only each of your children can give me. And until they do, none of you are leaving here. If any one of you is foolish enough to make a move….."

He looked over towards Phantomon who branded chain menacingly.

"My messenger is off to inform your children now. They will have a decision to face. Either surrender what I want or never see any of you again.

And with that he cackled away. It was a truly a terrifying laugh. All the parents clung to each other in terror. Tai and Kari's parents, Mimi's parents, Izzy's parents and Matt and TK's parents too.

**Hope you enjoyed. We've got two little stories going on here. Whilst the digi-destined and the parents face this crisis, TK/Trowa is off in a police station somewhere doing something completely different. The two will cross eventually, I'm slowly working on bring them together. **

**Please rate and review, it's highly appreciated.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Time for chapter 17. Follows on from the previous one. Please forgive any spelling mistakes.**

Izzy and Tentomon were on their way to the park located in the centre of Oikawa again for another meeting with their fellow digi-destineds.. His parents had gone for a meal which was ideal, it meant both he and Tentomon could slip out of the apartment without having to answer awkward questions. He hoped they could get back before his mom and dad did.

They were going to meet the rest of the gang for a short notice evening meeting. The park wouldn't be busy this time of the evening but it was also early enough for the sun to still be up. He and Matt had called everyone today to tell of the meeting, telling them only that they had "important new information". Everyone else was going to learn Myotismon and his evil plans, but also Patamon was going to come and reunite with everyone too. The little digimon would have to be the one who informed Matt about TK.

"Are we nearly there Izzy?" asked Tentomon. The bug digimon was dressed in an old green hoody and a cap to avoid attention. The disguise seemed to be working as nobody was looking twice at them as they walked down the street.

"Nearly Tentomon," he replied. Izzy looked at his watch which told him it 6:45pm. The meeting was scheduled for 7pm. Everyone had agreed to come, even Joe who lived across town and hadn't been able to make the previous meeting at Tai and Kari's.

He'd told Patamon to come the meeting and only he and Tentomon knew that the little digimon would be coming. Patamon said he was in possession of TK's old crest and digivice which he could use to find everyone else and know where about the meeting was taking place. He hoped Patamon found his way here okay, they couldn't tell Matt until he arrived.

Eventually Izzy and Tentomon reached the park and entered through the gateway. They were meeting everyone else underneath the large tree in the centre of the park again like last time. It wasn't long before the tree came into view, and the several people underneath too. It looked like he was the last one here again.

"There they are Tentomon, let's go," he said pointing. The both of them ran up to join everyone else.

"Here's Izzy and Tentomon," declared Sora. Everyone watched as their friends approached.

"Hi guys," said Izzy reaching them. "Looks like we're last here again."

"It's okay," said Joe now. "At least you we here last time."

Every one of the in-training digimon, like Tentomon, had digivolved back into their rookie forms overnight which was good to see. High above in the tree branches though observing everyone else was another rookie digimon. It was Patamon. He'd arrived here a few minutes before and had been waiting for Izzy like everyone else. He currently out of sight and nobody knew he was there, he waiting for an opportune time to introduce themselves. He'd indeed used TK's old digivice to find this place, using it yo lock on to everyone else. He had it and the crest of Hope in small pouch that he had tied around his middle. It was so good to everyone again he thought to himself. Matt and Gabumon, Joe and Gomamon, Sora and Biyomon, Mimi and Palmon, Tai and Agumon. There was a little girl standing next to Tai whom TK didn't recognise. She must have been his little sister. And he was letting her see the digimon like this? Strange.

The group exchanged hellos but quickly got down to business. Izzy didn't see Patamon anywhere, hopefully he was on his way. For not and Matt would have to everyone else about Myotismon.

He launched into his explanation as to why he'd summoned them here. Patamon who was listening up from the tree allowed Izzy to explain everything before coming down to talk to everyone.

Once Izzy and Matt had finished explaining what was going on to everyone else (and Tai explained that Kari was the eight digi-destined child as Matt and Joe both still didn't know this. They'd managed to locate her crest. It was a very powerful crest indeed, the crest of Light. Still no sign of her digimon yet though.) Everyone was left with many fears and questions.

"But…. but… if Myotismon comes here, he'll wreak havoc," said Mimi fearfully.

"I know," said Matt nodding. "That's why we have to stop him when he does. First though, we have to go back and get TK."

Everyone exchanged sad glances. Izzy pulled on his collar nervously and Tai sighed. There was still no sign of Patamon but they all couldn't continue to hide the truth from Matt and Gabumon any longer. One of them would have to tell him.

Patamon heard what Matt had said and, with a heavy heart, stood up from his branch. That was his cue to reveal himself.

"Matt," said Tai. "There's something you need to know…. about TK," said Tai sadly now.

"What is it?" asked Gabumon.

"Yeah, what!?" demanded Matt surprised now. Did they guys know something they weren't telling him.

"Matt please," said Sora sadly trying to diffuse what she could tell was going to be a very bad situation. "We never wanted to hide it from you."

"HIDE WHAT!?" he demanded raising his voice. They were hiding something, he could tell.

"It's about TK," said Izzy.

Before anyone could react Matt darted over to Izzy and grabbed the shorter boy by his shirt roughly.

"Tell me. What do you know about TK!" he shouted, shaking Izzy aggressively. The blonde had well and truly lost his cool now.

"Whoa Matt, calm down," said Joe now pulling him away from Izzy.

"Yeah Matt, get ahold of yourself," said Gomamon as well.

"What are you all hiding!? What is it you know about TK!?" the blonde demanded.

"I'll tell him," declared a voice now. Everyone looked around to see who'd spoken. After a few seconds little digimon dropped out of the tree above them. They all (except Izzy and Tentomon) could hardly believe their eyes. It was Patamon.

"PATAMON!" everyone shouted in unison. They all couldn't believe it was really him. Where had he come from? How did he get here and find them?

In literally seconds everyone was crowded around the little digimon cheering and hugging him, so pleased to see him again.

"How did you get here?" asked Agumon.

"Where did you come from?" asked Mimi.

"How've you been?" asked Biyomon.

Patamon just smiled. He was so happy to be back with his friends again after so long. After everyone had composed themselves and settled down Patamon began to explain.

"I came here from the digital world guys, to help you fight with Myotismon."

"How did you know we were going to be here?" asked Palmon.

"I have my ways," Patamon smiled (Izzy grinned slightly too).

"How did you get here Patamon?" asked Tai now.

"I came through the digi-gate, it's open again now," he answered.

"It's well and truly open again?" whooped Matt now who was close to tears. He and Gabumon were so happy to see Patamon again. Now just for his brother. "Fantastic. Where's TK Patamon?"

Patamon's smile faded. It was now time for the hard part.

"Matt, TK…"

"TK what? where is he Patamon? How come is he isn't with you? Has been okay in the digital world? Please tell me you've been taking care of him whilst I've been away."

Patamon sighed. He didn't know he had the heart to do this after all.

"HEY THERE LOSERS!" shouted a voice from above which caught everybody off guard.

"What was that?" asked Kari as everyone looked around.

"UP HERE MORONS!" shouted the voice again. They all looked up and saw what looked like a giant flying above them.

"What's that?" asked Mimi.

"I know him," said Palmon. "That's Demi-Devimon. He works for Myotismon."

"Well if he works for Myotismon, what's he doing here!?" gasped Tai.

"I tell you," said Demi-Devimon answering his question. "I'm here to let you little pipsqueaks know that Lord Myotismon has arrived here in the human world. He's come to take this place over and to wipe out you little digi-destined brats once and for all!"

"Why you…..!" shouted Tai back at him now angrily.

"I think you kids should head on over to Bennington's restaurant now instead of standing here having a soppy reunion with flopsy," laughed Demi-Devimon.

"Why do we need to go there?" asked Sora.

"Because," began Demi-Devimon. "Lord Myotismon is waiting for you all there. He has some guests with him too."

"What guests?" demanded Matt now. Did Myotismon have TK?

"Put it this way, did all of your families have a place to go to tonight?" asked Demi-Devimon evilly to all of them.

Everyone stopped and thought. The looks on each other's faces told them all the answer to Demi-Devimon's question.

"That's right," the bat digimon mocked now. "Lord Myotismon has all of your parents as his prison and there ain't a damn thing you can do about it!"

"OH MY GOD!" gasped Mimi.

"NO!" gasped Sora bringing her hands over her face.

"YOU MONSTER!" shouted Tai angrily as Kari grabbed a hold his hand upset and frightened for their mom and dad.

"HAHAHA!" Demi-Devimon laughed.

"COME ON, WE'VE GOT TO GET OVER THERE!" declared Izzy. Everyone nodded in agreement. They all began to run (or in Patamon, Biyomon and Tentomon's cases, flew) towards the park exit. Demi-Devimon just watched and laughed as he watched them go. He'd done his part by delivering the message, now his master would take over.

Bennington's restaurant was about 10 minutes away from the park in the town centre and everyone ran there furiously (the flying digimon went over the buildings, safely out of sight).

"What do you think Myotismon's done to our families?" asked Mimi as they all ran. She and Sora were nearly crying they were so upset.

"I don't know, hopefully they're okay," said Joe.

"They won't be for much longer if we don't hurry!" said Tai.

"Mom, Dad, TK," was all Matt could think of.

They eventually reached the restaurant Demi-Devimon had spoke about. Bursting through the doors like a pack of angry bulls, the digi-destined found the lobby suspiciously empty.

"Where are they!?" asked Izzy.

"Maybe through this door," answered Matt. Leading everyone else, he went over to the large posh looking double doors which must have led to the dining room. Opening the door, the sight that confronted the digi-destined confirmed their worst fears.

Each of their families, (Matt's mom and dad, Tai and Kari's mom and dad, Mimi's mom and dad, Izzy's mom and dad, Joe's brother Jim and Sora's mom) were all surrounded by a circle of Bakemon, nasty ghost-like digimon. Standing over them was a grim-reaper like digimon who looked very evil indeed. And next to him was the most evil digimon of all, Myotismon himself.

"Aaah children, so delighted you could join us," he smiled.

"KIDS!" said on the parents in unison now.

All of the digi-destined now each called towards their respective family member, asking them if they were okay. Myotismon banged his hands together firmly to silence everyone.

"QUIET, ALL OF YOU!" he ordered. Everyone immediately stopped shouting.

"LET OUR FAMILIES GO MYOTISMON!" shouted Tai angrily now.

"THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!" shouted Matt.

"WHAT IS IT YOU WANT?" asked Mimi.

Myotismon just laughed. That horrible, mocking laugh of his.

"You see digi-destined, I hold all the cards here. If one of you even thinks about digi-volving….. (Phantimon flashed his chain at them) your families will pay the price."

The digi-destineds all scowled now. What were they supposed to do? Myotismon was right, he did hold all the cards. One move and he'd hurt their families.

"What is it you want?" asked Mr Kamiya now speaking up. Myotismon turned towards him.

"Simple," he answered. "I want your children…. (he turned back towards the digi-destineds) to all hand over their crests. Too me."

The children and their digimon all gasped. He wanted their crests, their most powerful weapons.

"You all have a choice to make," Myotismon continued. "Either each of you hand over your crest or your families pay the price. Make up your mind."

The children all turned looked at one another. They all had an individual choice to make. They all truly only had one choice they could make though.

Phantimon now approached them and was holding out a bag. Matt was the first one to step forward. As everyone in the room watched, his fellow digi-destined, their parents, Myotismon, and all the Bakemon, Matt (with Gabumon faithfully beside him) took his crest from around his neck and placed in the bag. Nancy and Hiroaki watched on, very proud of their son for being so brave.

Following his lead everyone else, Tai and Agumon with little Kari, Izzy and Tentomon, Joe and Gomamon, Sora and Biyomon and Mimi and Palmon all walked forward and place their crests into the bag Phantimon was holding. Once he had them all Phantimon floated back over to Myostimon and handed him the bag. The evil vampire digimon began to cackle. He had what he wanted, now he could rule both this world and the digital world.

"Wise choice," he laughed. He then ordered his Bakemon to stand down.

"We're finished here, now I have the crests I am unstoppable!" he cackled. He then created one of his dark portals and as everyone watched in horror he stepped into it, followed by Phantimon and one by one by the Bakemon.

When they were all gone, the kids and their parents store at one another for a few seconds. They then all rushed towards each other. Each child was embraced by their parents (Joe by his brother), so happy that they were safe. The digimon just watched, happy for the partners that their families were okay.

Eventually after a few minutes when everybody had calmed down (several of them had burst into tears at being reunited with their children or parents) they began to talk.

"What's going on here kids?" asked Hiroaki. "Who was that?"

"His name was Myotismon sir," answered Izzy after his mother finally released him from her embrace. "He's a very evil digimon from a place called the digital world. He's come here to the human world to try and take over."

"What does he want with you kids?" asked Joe's brother Jim now.

"He wanted our crests," answered Tai releasing his father.

"What are they?" asked his and Kari's mother.

"Devices that allow OUR digimon to power up," said Joe shortly.

"How are we supposed to stop Myotismon now?" sobbed Sora who still in her mother's arms. "We all gave him our crests. Without them our digimon can't digivolve to fight him."

"We had no choice," said Matt he hadn't wanted at all to give up his crest of friendship, he would have done so a thousand times over to protect his family. "We have no crests left, but we did the right thing." Matt's father put a hand firmly on his son's shoulder and Nancy grabbed his hand and squeezed it.

"You know when you just said we didn't have any crests left?" said Patamon speaking up now. He was the only digimon who'd spoke in the last couple of minutes. All eyes in the room turned towards him.

"You see, there's one crest Myotismon didn't get."

He then stood up on his hind legs to show them the pouch wrapped to his tummy. With EVERYONE transfixed Matt was the one who walked forwards toward him. He reached Patamon, knelt down and put his hand into the pouch. He guessed what it was he was going to pull out and he proved right. He pulled out a digivice and the crest of Hope. TK's crest of Hope. The tears welling up inside his eyes he stood up, turned around and held the crest up for everyone else to see. The other digi-destineds and their digimon just gasped.

**Another chapter in the bank. Lots happening and lots more to come I promise you. Like I've said previously, certain things which were drawn-out in the anime have been kind of rushed and glossed over in this fic all so I can get on with the main story so please don't be confused if some things have been missed out or barely explained.**

**What do you think of this story and where it's going? Please rate and review, I'd highly appreciate any feedback from loyal readers.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hello. Time for the next chapter which follows on directly from the last one. Enjoy and please forgive any spelling mistakes.**

**Chapter 18**

It had been a long night for Trowa. He'd spent the night at the police station in the detention centre, a part of the building they kept kids who stayed overnight. He was inside here with three other boys, all looked a similar age to him if not slightly older. Except they all looked well….. very rough.

One boy an ugly scar on his left cheek, likely by caused by a knife. There was also a black kid who was covered in gang tattoos and had a heavy gold chain around his neck. The third boy a kid was sat in the corner, not talking to anybody. He had black hair and big thick glasses, he looked like someone you'd expect to see in a library, not a police station. He was actually the scariest of the three to be honest, he just sat there in complete silence, not only even looking up.

Eventually the boy with the scar spoke up;

"So Blondie? What are you hear?" he asked. Trowa was quite taken aback as he hadn't expected any of these guys to talk to him.

"Erm," he stuttered, not sure whether or not he should tell them truth. The two first boys continued to stare at him, sizing him up.

"You guys say what you're in for first," he eventually said boldly.

"Me?" muttered the scarred boy. "Caught in possession of a knife. Bastard cops stopped and searched me. Took my knife and brought me here. Won't let me leave until someone comes for me."

"I beat some cracker up and took his money," said the black boy now. "He called the cops who came around to my hood and arrested me. As soon I as get out I'm gonna get even with that snitch."

Trowa then turned towards the third boy in the corner. He still wasn't moving or saying anything. It was like he was in his own world.

"Just forget him," advised the first boy to Trowa now about the third boy. "That guy was the first one of us they put in here and he hasn't said a word. He ain't the mixing type it seems. Now come on Goldilocks, what's your deal?"

Deciding that first two boys had been honest with him and that he might as well be honest about himself, he told them the truth.

"I was caught peeping in a girl's locker room at the gym," he confessed, his face going very red.

The first two boys just started at him for a minute as they took that information in. They then both burst into laughter.

"WHAT!? THEY ARRESTED YOU FOR THAT!? Hell, these guys really are losing it."

"Yeah, who the hell hasn't spied on chicks naked? Talk about petty."

Trowa just smiled lightly. These guys were intimidating but seemed friendly enough. He still couldn't wait to get away though.

….

**Back to last night with the digi-destined and their parents.**

Matt's hand shook as he held his little brother's crest for all to see. Everyone else's jaws just dropped.

"Patamon… how did you get this?" asked Matt now turning towards the little digimon. "Where's TK!? Where is he!? How come you have the crest and he doesn't?"

Before Patamon could answer any of those questions, a certain person made his presence known.

"I will answer that," said an invisible voice.

"WHO WAS THAT!?" demanded Mr Kamiya now as all the parents, kids and digimon looked around to see where the strange voice had come from. They quickly got their answer, and it was coming from Izzy's computer.

"Hey, I know where it's coming from," said Izzy pulling his backpack off his shoulders and taking out his laptop. Sure enough, one he opened it up, the sight of Gennai could been.

"GENNA!" yelled all the digi-destined, them and the digimon all shocked. The parents where all just very confused.

"Hi kids, it's been a long time," he chuckled. "I suppose you all want to hear about Takeru?"

Everyone's ears shout up, particulary Matt's, Gabumon's, Nancy's and Hiroaki's.

"You kids are the only ones who can stop Myotismon," Gennai began to explain to everyone. "But he now has your crests. Correct?"

"Yes," Tai answered on behalf of the group. "We had no choice."

"Oh I don't blame you at all kids," Gennai told them. "You all made the right choice. Your families are what's most important."

All the kids turned to look at their own parents. The families all looked into another eyes. They all knew that Gennai was right, they had made the right choice in giving up their crests.

"That said, you still have one crest don't you? The crest of Hope if I'm not mistaken."

"Yes," said Matt quietly now who was still holding the crest. He was clutching it tightly in his hand.

"That was your brother's crest, wasn't it Matt?" asked Gennai. All eyes in the room turned to Matt everyone listened intently, none more so than Nancy and Hiroaki.

"Yes," Matt answered quietly.

"And now that crest represent the most important thing of all," Gennai told them. "It represents hope itself. You must never lose hope kids. If you do, the battle is lost."

"So, what do we do?" asked Izzy now.

"You must find Takeru," Gennai replied. "He is the only one who can use the crest's power, together with Patamon. Without him, there is no hope of getting the other crests back and stopping Myotismon?"

"BUT WHERE IS HE!?" demanded Matt now, losing his composure. "Why won't anyone tell me? What's happened to him? Why isn't he here with Patamon? Is he okay?"

Everyone turned towards Gennai to hear him give Matt (and his parents who were not at his sides) the answers to those to questions. Gennai sighed before finally giving him the news.

"I'm not going to lie to you or yours and Takeru's mother and father," began Gennai. "Though I warn all the three of you, the answer may not be easy for you to hear."

At this point everyone else, sensing this was going to be a very difficult, personal conversation, began to file out of the room. Once everyone was left (Gabumon and Patamon) being the only ones who stayed behind to hear this, Gennai began.

"TK was left in the digital world whilst you and all the other kids returned here to the digital world. He was left all alone and without anyone to take care of him. I feared for him. I feared that without you or any of the other digi-destineds, he'd be an easy target for Myotismon. He and Patamon had a falling out and they both went their separate ways."

"I wasn't like that!" Patamon exclaimed now, tears coming down his face. He didn't want Matt and their mom and dad to think he just left TK on his own willingfully. "Me and TK had a very nasty argument. He told me to go, he forced me to leave him. He said he didn't want me as a friend anymore. I was devastated about it."

"Why would he do that? What did you guys argue about?" asked Matt now.

"About… about… you…" Patamon told him sadly.

"About… me?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because TK has changed Matt," Gennai told him.

"What do you mean?" asked Nancy now, joining in.

"TK has spent so long in the digital world, he's not the same as he once was."

"But he's only been there a week without me, how could he have changed?" asked Matt. He was very confused now.

"That's the hard part to tell you all," Gennai said gravely. "TK's hasn't been alone in the digital world for just a week. At least not to him."

"What are you trying to tell us?" demanded Hiroaki now. "Just tell us. What has happened with TK?"

"Time passes differently in the digital world here than it does here in the human world," explained Gennai finally getting to the difficult but important parts. "A week may have passed since the three of seen Takeru, but to him the digital world, because time passes differently, it's been even longer."

"Well, how much longer?" asked Nancy, desperate to know more about her baby.

Gennai took a deep breath for telling them the truth.

"Seven YEARS," he said.

"SEVEN YEARS!?" Matt gasped. Nancy put her hands to her mouth, Hiroaki's jaw just dropped.

"No," said Nancy now. "No that can't be right. You're wrong, you have to be wrong. TK hasn't spent seven years away from me. He just can't have!"

"I'm afraid it's true," said Patamon sadly now, confirming awful revelation. "Seven years have passed in the digital world. TK's now seven years older than when you last saw him."

Matt was speechless, Nancy began to sob and break down and Hiroaki was just rocked to his core. TK, the innocent little brother to Matt, the adorable baby son of Nancy and Hiroaki, he'd been all on his own, without them for so long. How could he have coped? What on Earth would he be like now, seven years older?

"I need to see him," said Matt finally, managing to find his voice. He'd been affected deeply by this like his parents but he had to start making things right. And the only way to do that was to see talk to his brother, even after so long. "Please, take me to him. Or bring him here."

"It's not as simple as that," Patamon told him now.

"Why not?" asked Gabumon.

"Because TK doesn't want to see you Matt," Gennai told them. That led to even more gasps of shock.

"How… how come?" Matt stuttered.

"Because he's angry, even after all this time."

"What's he angry about?" asked Hiroaki.

"Angry about Matt and Gabumon leaving him," answered Patamon.

Both Nancy and Hiroaki turned to look at the eldest son. Was that true? Had he deliberately left TK by himself?

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I LEFT HIM!?" shouted Matt going on the defensive. He was not far from tears himself now. "HE'S MY BROTHER, I LOVE HIM AND I'D DO ANYTHING TO PROTECT HIM!"

"Yes, Matt would never leave TK alone like that," chipped in Gabumon to defend his friend.

"I know you guys didn't mean to leave him," cried Patamon. "It was when you guys told me and TK to wait at the theme park. You both never came back and it broke TK's heart. Demi-Devimon came along and filled TK's head with all sorts of lies. Lies about how you and all the others digi-destineds thought he was just a crybaby and didn't want him around anymore."

"Who's this Demi-Devimon?" Matt demanded to know now. This evil digimon had told poor TK all those horrible lies about him. He couldn't imagine how upset his little brother would have been.

"He's that digimon who came to the park earlier to tell us what was going on here. He's one of Myotismon's servants. He got into TK's head and filled it with nasty lies about you and the others."

"And he believed him?"

Patamon just nodded slowly. All of this these were very bad memories for him. He remembered it like it was yesterday. Being at the theme park with little TK when he Tokomon. Demi-Devimon coming along and lying to TK, turning his against his friends. TK telling him, his digi-partner, to go away and leave him alone and that he didn't want him as a friend anymore. It still broke his heart to think about that terrible day.

"Oh no….." said Matt now as everything began to dawn him. His little brother had spent all this time, thinking that he'd been left on purpose. That he, Matt, thought that way about him. TK was so young and gullable, that's why he'd believed it.

"So, what are you both saying?" asked Hiroaki. "That we can't see TK?"

"No, we're not saying that," replied Gennai shaking his head. "You will see your son again."

"WHEN!?" demanded Nancy now, the tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I don't know," admitted Gennai. He sighed and thought a little. This grieving family wanted answers about their son and brother. It wasn't easy to deliver this news to them, but it had to be done.

"Is TK still in the digital world?" asked Matt now quietly. Gennai looked Matt in the eyes. There were tears in them now just like his mothers'.

"No," Gennai told them. "No he's back in the real world. He returned here a short while ago. I do not know where he is currently though, I lost my ability to track his whereabouts once he left the digital world."

"How do we find him then?" demanded Hiroaki.

"You must track down two digimon named Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. They came to the real world with TK, they will likely know where he is."

"I know those too," said Gabumon. "Aren't they minions of Myotismon?"

"They were, but not anymore. TK is friends with the both of them. If you find them, you'll find TK."

"I'll help find them," Patamon promised now. "They won't be too hard to find. I know them fairly well so I have some ideas of where about they'd go in the real world. Hopefully we fin TK with them still."

"Yes, find Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. They are the key to finding TK. And finding TK is the key to defeating Myotismon."

**Yo guys, sorry about the little wait. Just been busy the last couple of days. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, we'll carry on with this story in the next one. Going to be interesting when the family and digi-destined do meet up with TK isn't it?**

**Hope you're enjoy this, please rate and review.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hello guys, time for chapter 19. Sorry there's been a long wait for this chapter since the last one, just decided I'd have a break for a week or so to recharge my batteries. Ready to go again now so let's go.**

**Thanks for all the reviews, favourties and follows. They are truly appreciated! Please forgive any spelling mistakes.**

**Chapter 19**

It was night and Trowa was still in the police station, still locked in the holding room with the three other boys. They'd been forced to stay here over night until the cops could decide what to do with them due to their parents not coming for them.

Trowa was sat in the corner of the room whilst all of the other boys slept around in different places. The moonlight was shining in through the window and it illuminated most of the room, Trowa though was purposefully sat in the darkness.

He couldn't sleep, he had too much on his mind. He was thinking hard about a lot of things. His family, the digi-destined, the digital world, Gotsumon, Pumpkinmon and Patamon and about what he would do next.

He'd always told himself that that he didn't want to go back to his family, his mom, dad and Matt. That that phase of his life was over, he didn't need them or any of the other kids and their digimon anymore. Not when he had his life in the digital world with Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. Yet here was, alone in a strange place with nobody to help him. This was the first night he'd spent without ANYBODY since that night where he'd first fell out with Tokomon. What a horrible night it had been for him, all alone and upset.

"Maybe… maybe I should go back and see them," Trowa found himself contemplating now. After so long of declaring no interest at all, finally Trowa was beginning to come around to the idea of seeing his family again.

"Perhaps I could go and see them but not show myself, just to see how their doing. I'm curious to know what things have been like for them without me, but I don't want them to know I'm back. I don't feel ready to talk to them."

He sighed and yawned as he tried to decided what he should do. Looking around the room he was brought back to his more immediate problem, how was he going to get out of here?

"These idiots aren't going to let me go," he told himself. "They'll probably end up sending to some orphanage or maybe even an institution for kids. They won't just let me go free. I need to get out of here, but how? Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon, they can't help me. God knows where they are now, I hope they're okay though. No one else knows I'm here. I'm on my own with this one. Think TK think."

He suddenly stopped and began thinking about something else entirely though. He just referred to himself as "TK". He hadn't done that in YEARS. The only people who had were Gennai and Patamon whenever he saw them. Trowa had become his name, he'd become so comfortable without that it felt so natural when his friends called him it. But here was now, calling himself TK again. It had to be all this thinking about his family that had caused it, they called him TK and would likely do so if he ever did meet with them again.

Trowa yawned again and his eye-lids began to feel heavy. He didn't have a watch so he had no idea what time it was but it had to be well into the wee hours of the morning now. He desperately needed to get a few hours sleep so he spread himself down on the floor and got himself into as comfortable a position as he could. Closing his eyes, he let himself slowly drift off, his brain still full of thoughts about his loved ones.

…

**The morning**

Trowa felt himself being roughly shaken awake by someone standing over him. He opened his blurry eyes to distinguish the form of the scarred boy standing over him and yelling;

"Get up kid, get up now! We're getting out here!"

Trowa snapped his eyes open fully and rubbed them as he jumped to his feet. There was a lot of commotion coming from the other end of the room, he could hair someone struggling. He took his hands away from his eyes and was greeted with a truly bizarre sight. The boy with the glasses who hadn't said a word all of last night was (along with the black buy with the tattoos) holding down an officer on the floor, covering his mouth to prevent him from crying out. The three others must have jumped him when he's come inside alone to wake them up.

"What the hell is going on?" Trowa asked flabbergasted.

"What's it look like dumbo?" replied the scarred boy. "We're escaping. We got the keys to the doors (he held up a chain of keys that he had in his hand) and we're going use them to open the door and make a break for it."

"Oh," Trowa nodded. He thought about it a little. This was just the chance he needed, the chance to get away. Thank God these other guys wanted out too, he doubted he could get away on his own.

"Okay crackers," said the black boy from the floor. "We're gonna unlock the door and then on my call we're all gonna make a break for it. Once we're outside it's everyman for himself. Just a find and run through it, if you make out then fair play to you. If you don't and then catch you then tough luck."

The scarred boy moved towards the door, put the key in the lock and gently turned it. There was a faint sound of clink as the lock was opened. As he did this the police officer on the floor continued to struggle as the other two held him down.

"Okay boys, on three we're gonna go. Okay?"

Trowa, the black boy and the boy with the glasses all nodded.

"Okay," he said grasping the door handle and getting ready to fling it open. "One. Two. THREE!"

He flung the door open and burst out. Trowa rushed out behind him, followed by the other two who released the officer and were away before he could stop them.

…

**A little later**

Trowa finally stopped running in order to catch his breath. He burst out of that cell and hadn't stopped, going past bewildered officers, crashing through a fire exit door, down a fire escape and then off down numerous alleyways. Several officers had attempted to chase after him but this time Trowa didn't allow himself to be caught.

He was careful where he'd ran this time and before long the cries of "STOP THAT KID!" from behind him died away. He must have managed to put a decent amount of distance between himself and the police station, they must have given up on trying to catch him (at least he hoped so). He continued to draw in deep gulps of air to get wind back in sales.

After a minute or so he finally stood up straight and began to look around and take in his surroundings. He was still in an back alley but could see the street and hear the sound of traffic from where he was. There way no sign of any of his three cell-mates, they must have ran off in different directions. Good luck to them wherever they went too.

"Phew, thank God for that," he thought to himself. "So glad I'm out of that mess. The question now was, what would he do and where would he go too?

"I suppose I better start looking for Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. But where could they have gone? They had no idea how to get around anywhere without me."

He began to walk to end of the alley and before long was out on the street again. Numerous people walked past him without giving so much of a second glance. Trowa looked around and tried to decipher where exactly he was. He recognised an ice-cream store near the end of the street called Willy's. It was a store his father used to take him and Matt too when they were babies. He must have been Penny Street, right in the heart of Oikawa town centre. A good mile or so away from Oikawa police station.

"Well, at least I know where I am," he told himself sighing. "Now where do I go though?" He leant against the wall and took another deep breath, this time to in help his brain think.

…

**Last night **

The digi-destineds, their digimon and their families had all gone back to their homes after an very eventual evening for them all. It had been very traumatic for the parents to learn about digimon and the digital world in such a frightening way. It had been equally frightening for the digi-destineds themselves to see their parents in such danger, even for such a brief time. They'd gone home for a long rest to calm down let the dust settle. One family hadn't gone to bed upon arriving home though, they'd stayed in into the early hours talking.

Matt (along with Gabumon) and his mom and dad Nancy and Hiroaki had all had a very difficult evening, the most difficult of anyone. They'd all learnt the truth about TK and what had happened with him and it was incredibly upsetting for them to accept.

"My baby, my poor little TK," Nancy sniffed as they all sat in the apartment living room. Her eyes were red and puffy, she'd been crying heavily.

"I can't believe any of this," said Hiroaki who was still numb with shock at what he'd been told. "Seven years…."

"He's spent seven years in the digital world," said Matt, his voice only a whisper. "Seven years there with only digimon and no one else."

The three just sat as they continued to wrap their heads around this astonishing revelation about the youngest member of their family. Eventually Matt spoke up;

"Mom, Dad," he began looking them both in the eyes. Both store back at him intently.

"I'll promise you both again. I'll find TK. I'll find him and bring him back. I promise I'll make sure he's okay and back with us."

Hiroaki just looked back his shoes but Nancy, still highly emotional, snapped. She jumped up from here chair and bawled;

"MATT, HOW COULD YOU LEAVE HIM LIKE THAT!? HOW COULD YOU LEAVE YOU BABY BROTHER ON HIS OWN IN A STRANGE PLACE. ANYTHING COULD AND MAY HAVE HAPPENED TO HIM! WHAT WHERE YOU THINKING ABANDONING HIM LIKE THAT!?"

Matt just store at her, tears forming in his eyes, unable to respond. Gabumon just remained silence feeling incredibly awkward. It was not his place to interfere with Matt's family. Hiroaki stood up from his chair and tried to calm his ex-wife down.

"Nancy honey, please calm down," he tried to reason as he placed his hands on her arms in a caring manner. She however shook him off and continued to bawl.

"Answer me Matt! Tell us, why did you leave him? Why did you TK all alone? You were supposed to be looking after him!"

Matt tried to answer her but the words couldn't come. He just stuttered pathetically as the tears began to fall. He'd never been yelled at like this before ever.

"Nancy….." whispered Hiroaki now more gently in her ear. She merely gave her eldest son one last look of anger (Matt wouldn't meet her eyes anymore) and then stormed off into the bedroom, Hiroaki's bedroom (the one she used to share with him when she'd lived here). Hiroaki store after her as Matt continued to stare at the floor, trying to hold in and hide his own tears. Gabumon patted his partner on the shoulder to reassure him that he was still there for him. Hiroaki eventually turned back to his son and sighed. He walked over and placed his own hand on his Matt's shoulder.

"She's just angry Matt," his father told him. "She's upset about what's happened to TK. He's always been here little baby, you know that. She's distraught over what's happened with him but she'll come around, I'll talk to her. For now go to bed, both of you (he nodded in Gabumon's direction). You need some sleep. Tomorrow when everything has sunk in we will start looking for TK."

Matt stood up from his chair, wiped his eyes and looked up at his father.

"Dad, I'm so sorry for what happened honestly. I didn't mean for this to happen with TK, truly I didn't. I didn't mean to leave him behind."

"I know Matt," replied Hiroaki patiently. "And your mom does too. Like I said, she's just upset but she'll come round don't worry."

Matt nodded and along with Gabumon headed towards his bedroom. Once they'd both entered and closed the door behind them Hiroaki looked towards his own bedroom door. He sighed again and headed towards to it.

Upon entering the bedroom he saw Nancy sitting on the edge of the bed, still sobbing and sniffling. He closed the door behind him and made his way over to sit beside her. He sat down and put an arm her to help calm her.

"Nancy, you know he didn't mean for what's happened to happen," he told her. She just continued to sniffle.

"Matt would never leave TK on purpose, he loves him and would always try to take care of him."

"I know that," she said now. "I was too hard on him just now. It's just…." she broke off. Hiroaki began to rub her back to soothe her.

"Ssshh," he whispered. "It's okay, we'll get him back soon, I promise. At least we know he's not stuck in that digital world anymore, now he's back in this world where we can find him. We'll start looking tomorrow."

"But…. but….. he won't be the same will he?" she said now. "He'll be different from how we remember him. He won't be a little boy anymore like you should be."

"No, he probably won't be the same," he had to admit sadly. "But he'll still be TK. Our TK. Our little baby boy. He'll still need us, especially after being on his own for so long."

Nancy wiped her eyes and turned to face her ex-husband. She looked deep into those strong brown eyes of his, the same eyes she'd fallen in love with all those years ago. She closed the difference between them and both then fell back onto the bed.

Little did any of the member family know that right at that moment, wherever they all were, they were all thinking about the same thing. All being together. Matt from his bedroom, Hiroaki and Nancy from theirs and TK from the prison cell he was stuck in. All of them thinking about the day they'd reunite and be together as a family again. And that day actually wasn't that far off at all.

**That's it for now. Next chapter soon. It's building isn't it? The eventual reunion will be worth the wait I promise you. For now, please rate and review because I'd appreciate it very much. Until the next chapter (likely tomorrow, if not then the day after) please take it easy. **


	20. Chapter 20

**Hi guys, time for another chapter. Time for TK/Trowa to have a serious think about things. What well he decided to do? Also, we'll what's become of Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon.**

**Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes. There were loads in the last one I know and I'm sorry. I'd go back and repost the chapters with everything fixed but it's something I'll do once I've completed the story whole. For now please try to read around them and enjoy.**

**Chapter 20**

Trowa had been walking around the town centre for several hours, all whilst still trying to work out what it was he should do next. Should he go back to mom's house? Should he go over to his dad's? Should he try and find Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon? He was just stuck.

"Oh man," he sighed as sat down on a park bench. He was now in Oikawa's city park. He decided to come through here because this was where he'd ended up when he and his two digimon friend first came back to the human world via the digi-portal. Perhaps Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon had come back here? It was worth a look he felt. Sadly though as he looked around, there was no sign of either of them.

"Oh man, it looks as if I have no choice," he whispered to himself now. He had no other alternative; he couldn't spend all night walking around the town in circles. He had to go back and seem them.

"I'm glad that you've seen sense," said a voice from behind him. Trowa in response leapt up off of the bench (and almost out of his skin).

He turned to face the speaker. It was Gennai.

"STOP DOING THAT!" he roared angrily now trying to catch his breath. Oh how hated when Gennai snuck up on him like that. The digi-guardian merely smiled in response to what he'd said.

"Sorry," he chuckled. "I know you don't like it when I come up unannounced like that. Believe, you're not the only person who tells me stop it."

"Yet you still don't listen," Trowa shot back not seeing the funny side.

"I must try harder to remember," Gennai smiled now.

"What are you doing here? What do you want? Do you know where Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon are?"

"I will answer some of those questions," Gennai told him patiently. "Firstly, I've been following you for a little while. I've known all along where you've been and what you've been doing since you came back. I'm speaking to you now because I'm pleased that you've finally come round about reuniting with your friends and family. Is that not what you've just admitted to yourself just this second?"

Trowa didn't immediately reply to this because he felt awkward. He didn't want to give Gennai the satisfaction of knowing he was right.

"I'm only going to go back because I have too, not because I want too," he said now coldly. "I've no other options, unless you want to tell me where Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon are?"

"I'm afraid even if I wanted to tell you that I can't," Gennai explained. "I was unable to keep track of them and they've given me the slip. They should be okay though; they can take care of themselves. However, you Takeru need to do what I know your heart has been telling you to do for a long time. Go back to your family."

Trowa turned away from him and began to stare up into the clear blue sky. Gennai came to stand beside him.

"I know you miss them TK," he said now. "I know you want to see your parents again and I know that you know that they want to see you. You're curious to see how they've lived without you. You're also worried about their reaction to seeing how you've changed. How you've grown up. All without them. Am I right?"

Again Trowa didn't answer him. He just continued to stare in silence, his expression stoic.

"I'm going to tell you something Trowa," Gennai said now. "I've spoken to your parents and your brother. I've told them about you."

Trowa snapped his face to stare down at Gennai in shock. He'd done what!?

"You…. you… you spoke to them? When!?"

"Last night," Gennai explained to him. "I told them everything. About you've grown up, how you've changed and how you feel about them now."

Trowa was stunned. He had no idea that Gennai would go and do something like this. He as completely at a loss of what to make of it.

"You… told them everything?"

"That's right."

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT!" Trowa burst out and getting angry again. "You had no right to go anywhere near my family without my permission!"

"I thought you didn't care? I thought you didn't need them?" Gennai countered now.

"I didn't. That still doesn't give you the right to speak to them. I will go back to them when I'm good and ready and you should know that. I should be the one to tell them about what's happened with me. You had no right telling them my business."

"I had every right Takeru. I'm the one who's been responsible for you whilst you grew up in the digital world. For years I watched you from afar, making sure nothing happened to you."

"What a load of crock," Trowa scoffed.

"It's 100% the truth," Gennai said firmly. "You think you were able to live on a beach with your two friends for years in peace because Myotismon couldn't find you? Come on, don't be that naïve. I kept you safe, along with Pixiemon. We made sure that Myotismon and his minions were never able to get near you. We made sure you were protected and that no harm could come to you. We allowed you a stable and comfortable upbringing because it's what you needed, being all on your own in the digital world without any other humans. The time came though when we needed you to step up and help us in the fight Myotismon to save both the digital world and this one. You however refused and acted like a child that I thought you'd grown out of. I had to take matters into my own hands. I brought you back here to the real world because I knew you likely wouldn't come back of your own accord, at least not at the time we needed you too. I met with your parents and all the other digi-destineds and I told them about you. I didn't tell them where you were or what you've been getting up too since coming back, I spared you the embarrassment. However, I told them that you were vital to the cause of us stopping Myotismon. I told them that in order to stop Myotismon from taking over both our worlds then finding you and using was the key. And now they will come looking for you. They know how much you are needed. But, even if you weren't they'd still look for you anyway because they love you want to see you again, especially your family. So what are you going to do Takeru? Are you going to keep being selfish and cowardly by running away or are you going to be the brave, responsible young man I know you truly are inside and go back?"

Gennai finally stopped to allow Trowa time to think and answer him. The blonde boy thought about everything he'd just been told. About himself, his family, his responsibilities and his options. He came to a conclusion.

"Okay Gennai," he stated quietly. "You win. I'm definitely going back."

"That's a good lad," Gennai smiled.

….

**Elsewhere**

Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were hanging upside down, their heads at least 5 feet off of the floor. Their legs had been bound and they were both being held up Bakemon. In front of them stood evil Myotismon himself. The two digimon had been captured.

"Right you traitorous pieces of vermin, I will ask you both one last time. WHERE WERE YOU BOTH HIDING THE BOY ALL THESE YEARS!?"

The two digimon both whimpered and sobbed (they'd both taken quite a beating and were still being whipped on now as information was being demanded. They still refused to give up information on their friend though.

"ANSWER ME!" Myotismon demanded angrily. "WHERE DID YOU HIDE HIM!? What was it that Gennai and Pixiemon did which prevented me from tracking you down? What became that filthy little digi-destined child, I know you both helped protect him! I know about the rest of those brats, I saw them only a few hours ago and I forced them to surrender their crests. I want to know what happened with that other boy though, where was he hiding and where is he right now!?"

"We're not telling you anything about him," Pumpkinmon said defiantly. "Here's our friend. We won't ever let you hurt him!"

"Yeah, damn right," piped up Gotsumon.

Myotismon just laughed lightly.

"Fine then you fools. If you want to play it that way. I will break you both, trust me. Either that or I'll torture you both to death. If you think you can last through what I will do to you both then you're sorely mistaken. I haven't started yet. I'm sure though that before long that I'll have you both begging to tell me what you. GRISLY WING!"

The two poor digimon where again attacked by the evil bats. They were being bitten and scratched profusely, their screams piercing through the air. But still, they refused to spill the beans on Trowa. They truly loved their friends and were keeping their promise to protect him. Two truly great friends.

**Thanks for reading guys. Much Shorter chapter this time sorry but the next chapter is where everything happens and it all kicks off. This one was more of a just set up and a lead in for the next one where the good stuff I've been building towards really starts to happen. I hope you're enjoying this story and are looking forward to what's coming, I promise I'll try my hardest to make it worth it. Please rather and review, it would be very highly appreciated. Until tomorrow then. **


	21. Chapter 21

**Time for chapter 23. More of Trowa and his latest developments. Please forgive any spelling mistakes and please enjoy.**

**Chapter 21**

Trowa had been told to meet Gennai outside the Willy's ice cream store later that evening. The digi-guardian told the blonde boy that there he would be re-united with someone. Trowa of course knew that he meant his family but all Gennai would say is that he'd meet "someone who cares for you (him) deeply and has missed you every day".

Trowa was extremely nervous now, he had been picturing what this moment would be like for seven whole years. The day he finally saw his mom again. His dad and Matt. He'd be reunited with them. What could he possibly say to them? What were they going to say to him? Gennai told him that he'd already explained to them Trowa's aging which helped settle him a little bit. At least the three of them would know what to expect when they saw him, he didn't want to have to go through the painful task of having to explain to them about the digital world and why going there had caused for him to change so much.

He turned a corner and arrived back on Penny Street. He headed towards Willy's but as he approached he saw no sign of anybody familiar. Reaching the entrance he decided to hang around outside. He wished he still had some money, he'd kill for an ice cream right about now. He didn't want to go inside when he knew he wouldn't be able to buy anything so Trowa waited outside and began to wait, his eyes scanning around to try and spot a familiar face.

After 10 minutes and Trowa was still waiting. Getting impatient and annoyed, he decided to go for a walk around the block and back again to kill some time.

"I'll walk around for a couple minutes, by the time I come back hopefully they'll be here," he thought to himself.

As he began to walk but after only a few seconds he heard a voice calling him;

"Takeru, over here."

He spun back around and saw Gennai standing in the exact same spot that Trowa himself that had been standing only 10 seconds before.

"How on Earth does he just pop up like that?" Trowa thought to himself. He jogged back to the spot and said to Gennai upon reaching him;

"Where have you been? I've been waiting a while. I was going to walk around the block and back again to kill time."

"I've been here since a few minutes also Takeru," Gennai replied.

"Then how come you didn't tell me? You just left me standing here like an idiot?"

"You told me not to just announce myself to you unexpectantly," Gennai said now dryly.

"Ha-ha, very funny," Trowa shot back. He decided not to be petty about it and instead let it go. There were more important things for him and Gennai to talk about.

"Okay well, here I am Gennai like you asked me to be," he said. "Where's my mom and dad? Are they coming?"

"No," answered Gennai shaking his head.

"No? What do you mean no? I thought you said to come here so I could be reunited with them?"

"I said they'd be a reunion for you but I never said anything about your parents."

"Then who were you talking about then?"

"You'll see," Gennai smiled. "We've both been waiting on him for a while now. He'll be here soon I'm sure."

…

**Patamon's POV**

Patamon glided through the sky as he headed to the place where Gennai had told him to be. He'd been told he was going to meet TK and he was very nervous about it. He hadn't seen TK in a couple months now and didn't know what to expect. The last time he and TK had seen each other in the digital world they'd been cordial with each other but things had been awkward between them for some time now, ever since their original falling out all those years ago.

So much had happened since then. They'd both come to the human world, Patamon had met with TK's parents and Matt. He'd told them everything about TK and seen how distraught about they were. Now Gennai had approached him earlier today and told him that TK was going to come and meet his family and all the other digi-destineds again, but first he wanted him and Patamon to reconcile first.

"You're going to meet with TK and the both of you are going to make up once and for all," Gennai had said. "Before TK comes back into the fold, you and him need to make up become partners again."

"But, do you think TK really wants to do that," Patamon had asked.

"Yes, I believe he does," said Gennai. "I think TK has finally began to see the light."

He'd told Patamon to meet him at an ice cream store called Willy's on Penny Street at 6:30pm where he'd be there with TK. Patamon couldn't help but be sceptical. Knowing TK how he knew him, it wouldn't surprise him at all if the blonde didn't show up for this meeting. He just so unpredictable with his behaviour and always had been. Still, he had to hope for the best and keep up his word to Gennai.

….

**Trowa's POV**

Trowa and Gennai were still waiting for Patamon and to be honest Trowa was getting fed up and very restless now.

"Where's this person we're meeting Gennai? If he's not here in the next two minutes then I'm leaving."

"And you'll go where?" asked Gennai.

"I don't know…." Trowa admittedly.

"I'll tell you," Gennai said. "You go back to your parents. But first you need to get this done."

"Go to my parents?" Trowa was confused. "My parents are divorced Gennai. My mom lives on the other side of town. My dad and my brother live in an apartment block not far from here."

"Then go to there then. Go see your father and brother."

"Fine, I will. But you need to hurry this up!"

"Ah, here we are," smiled Gennai now as Patamon came into view. Trowa spotted the little digimon approaching too and realised who it was he was going to be reunited with. It was his former digimon partner.

Patamon spotted Gennai and low and behold, TK. He had come after all. He swooped down and landed down beside them.

"Hello," he smiled tentatively. "Hi Gennai. Hi TK."

"Hello Patamon," Gennai smiled.

"Hi," TK said nervously.

"Okay, now that I have you both here let's get straight to it," the digi-guardian began. "You two need to let bygones be bygones. But whatever badness that happened behind you. Right now, you both need each other. The real world and digi-world need the both of you to come together as partners again."

TK and Patamon gave each long, searching looks. It had been so awkward between the pair of them for so long. You could say they'd been ready to bury the hatchet for a while, they just need really had officially. Whenever they'd met in the digital world they'd been okay with one another, but each and every time they'd crossed paths all short words had been shared. They hadn't had a heart to heart conversation in years, not since the days they'd been with the other digi-destineds.

"Is there something you each want to say to one another?" Gennai prodded. Trowa decided to be the one to take the first step. He cleared his throat and said;

"Pat, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything."

"I'm sorry too TK," the little digimon replied. He was starting to well-up.

"I'm sorry that we fell out. I'm sorry I didn't make more of an effort to keep in touch with you the last few years. I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you when you needed me."

"It's okay Patamon," Trowa replied. "It was my fault. I should never have said I didn't want you as my friend any more. I know you were just looking out for me. But Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were not who you said they were. They've raised me for years and moulded me into who I am. They never once abandoned me."

"I know that now," said Patamon, the tears beginning to fall. "I know that they're good digimon, I just didn't at the time. I'll apologise to them next time I we meet."

"I'd appreciate that," said Trowa warmly now. He honestly feeling very happy at this moment. He felt like he'd just dropped one of the biggest rocks he'd been carrying around for a long time.

"I think you too should shake hands or something," Gennai chuckled.

Trowa in response to this suggestion did indeed stretch out his hand. Patamon met it with his paw. They shook and both broke out into big smiles. Trowa had his best friend back. Patamon had his.

"Right then boys, now that we've got that sorted you both know what comes next."

"Yes, I do," Trowa replied.

"Good. Patamon, go with with Takeru now. You two are officially partners again. And I think it's only right you get this back."

Gennai reached into his pocket and pulled out a digi-vice, TK's digivice. The gadget he's discarded in his anger all those years ago. Trowa took it and looked it intensly. It felt so strange to hold one of these after so long. Strange yet…. Right.

"Now you need to go to your family," said Gennai. "They have already met Patamon here. Go there now the both of you. You have some more emotional reunions to complete now."

"Yes okay," TK nodded. He pocketed his digivice and said;

"Come on Patamon, let's go."

Patamon beamed and leapt up to stand upon TK's shoulder. He hadn't done this in years.

"Just like old times," he laughed.

"Yeah, just like old times," Trowa smiled back.

"Alright boys, get going. You have some people to see. I'll come see you both in the morning, then we can start discussing about how we're going to deal with Myotismon with everyone else. No doubt they'll be some fun reunions then too."

TK nodded and turned on his way with Patamon on his shoulder. The bearer of hope was well and truly back. The real TK was back. To an extent.

….

**Later**

It was dark now and the raining was pouring. TK and Patamon were stood outside an apartment building complex, hiding from the rain in a bus shelter across the road. They'd been sat here for a few hours now. They'd come here, to where TK's father Hiroaki and Matt lived. It was only 20 minutes walk away from Penny Street but upon arriving here TK had stopped and refused to go any further. He was honestly having second thoughts and he admitted this Patamon.

"I'm scared Patamon," he explained. "I'm nervous that when I go up there and knock on the door and they see me. What are they going to say. What am I going to say? It's been so long. So much has changed."

"It's natural to be apprehensive TK," Patamon replied. "You haven't seen your family in so long. But to them it's been barely any time at all. Still, Gennai told you that he already explained everything to them. They've gotten over the initial shock and now just want to see you. They're up there now, waiting."

"You've met them, haven't you?"

"Yes I have."

"What have been saying. What's it been like."

"They're distraught. They really want to see you. Of course they were shocked when Gennai told them about you spending seven years in the digital world but they still love and miss you. If anything it's made them want you back even more. They want to see what's become of you for themselves."

TK thought about this. He clicked tongue as he thought long and hard about what to do.

"They're ALL up there?" he asked.

"Yep," Patamon replied. Your mom, your dad, Matt and Gabumon. They're all up there."

"Why is my mom here? She doesn't live here, she lives, well WE lived on the other side of town."

"She'd been staying here with your dad and Matt for the past few days. Ever since she found out about you she's stayed here because she was so upset she needed support. Your mom, dad, Matt and Gabumon. They've all been supporting each other."

TK nodded and thought some more. The rain was coming down heavy now and it lashed against the roof of the shelter making a tremendous racket. It was very cold too and Patamon began to shiver. TK didn't though. He was used to extreme weather conditions like this after living in the digital world.

"I've decided what I'm going to do," he said calmly after thinking for a while. "I'm not going up there."

"WHAT!?" gasped Patamon. "WHY!?"

"I just don't feel ready quite yet. I know I promised Gennai but I need more time Patamon. Time to think some more."

Patamon was disappointed but accepted his friend's decision. He knew just how badly TK's family wanted to see him. And badly wanted TK to go them. But if TK didn't feel ready yet then he didn't have to see them. It was his decision.

"Okay TK, it's up to you. Whenever you feel ready then tell me. I'll support you and I won't ever leave your side again. That's a promise."

"Thanks Pat," he smiled. And with that he zipped up his coat (he still had that leather one he'd stolen a few days before) and with Patamon back on his shoulder, he walked out into the rain and headed out into the night. At least now he wasn't alone anymore. He had his digi-partner back .He just wasn't comfortable enough to have his family back though. As much as he wanted to see them, he just needed more time.

**Another chapter with not a lot I know. Sorry for this but again, it's all building up to something I promise you. Think of every chapter like being half an episode long. Anyway, TK and Patamon are back together. The boys are certainly back in town. I have other plans for them for the moment though, that's why he didn't go and meet his family. On the fly I've decided to change how I will go with this story. I had something else planned but I've decided to run with something else now. I believe it's even better but it will mean another couple of chapters to build up to. It'll be worth it though I promise you.**

**Thanks for maintaining your interesting and for keeping on readying this story. Please keep reviewing, favouriting and following, it's highly appreciated. Helps me to stay motivated. Until the next chapter then.**


	22. Chapter 22

**Time for the latest chapter of this story. We saw TK/Trowa and Patamon become friends again in the last chapter and then walk away from reuniting with his family. What will happen now? Read on to find out. Please forgive any spelling mistakes. Enjoy.**

**Chapter 22**

**Night - Ishida Apartment**

Matt lay on the couch sleeping top and tail with Gabumon and listened intensly as the rain hammered down outside. He couldn't sleep, he had so much on his mind.

He and the other digi-destineds had spent all day searching for TK but it had been a fruitless so far. He went to every place he thought TK might possibly be or go too and had drawn up a blank. His mom had finally brought herself to go back to her and TK's apartment to wait for him there in case he came back but to save her the pain of being by herself his father had called her back to his and Matt's to stay for another another night.

Matt didn't mind having her here now, he'd gotten used to her presence. In fact (though he'd never admit it) he'd grown to enjoy her company. It had been so awkward for so long between them because he'd refused to have much to do with her. He gotten so used to having no maternal figure in his life that it felt strange to him at first having her around the apartment, but before long it began to feel as if she'd always lived here. For the first time in a long time, he'd remembered what it was like to have his mother in his life, just like she was before the divorce.

She'd apologised to him for her previous outburst the morning after she'd said it just like his father said she would. He understood why she'd been angry, TK was (again as his father pointed out) her little baby boy. He didn't blame for getting so distraught, he would and had been the same in the past (on one occasion it had led to an actual fight with Tai). She was staying in his room tonight, she'd been on the couch the last few nights due to him staying in his room. When he realised how rude it had been to not offer it to her he felt slightly ashamed. His father had always taught to be respectful to women or guests and his mother was both of those.

He lay there continuing to think about his brother and about Myotismon (Gabumon had fallen asleep), unable to get his brain to close down. All of a sudden he heard a creak in the darkness. He instantly closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep. He heard more creaking and realised it was the sound of a door being opened. Specifically, it was his bedroom door.

His mother had gotten up for some reason, likely to use the bathroom. He continued to pretend to be asleep as he listened to her very light footsteps walk around the apartment. He heard her approaching the couch where he lay and he remained motionless, taking light breathes to further the illusion he wasn't awake. He could feel standing over and looking down at him in the darkness. He then felt her soft hand touch the top of his forehead and lightly stroke him down to his cheek. She then slowly moved away and he heard walk to another part of the apartment. He heard her carefully and discreetly open the door to his FATHER'S ROOM. She entered and quietly close it after her. He heard hushed voices talking inside before settling down to silence again. He waited up to half an hour but his mother didn't re-emerge again.

It didn't an idiot to work out what was a going on and it left him shell-shocked.

….

**Elsewhere**

The evil digimon Lord stood atop the tallest building in the city, the rain pouring itself down on to him (though it didn't bother him in the slightest). Either side of him were Demi-Devimon and Phantomon.

"It doesn't look as if they're going to talk my Lord," explained Phatomon. "We've tortured them for days and still they refuse give up what they know about that child who holds the last crest."

Myotismon continued to stare out into the view of the city (picturing it under his control) and didn't answer his minion.

"My Lord, what should we do next?" asked Demi-Devimon now. Myotismon again didn't answer, at least not immediately. After a while he turned around to face the other two.

"My plan to digi-volve into my most powerful form cannot come to fruition unless I hold all of the digi-destined's crests. I originally believed there were seven children which equalled seven crests. However, I was mistaken. They're in fact EIGHT children and EIGHT crests. The final crest I need is must being held by that cowardly boy who has hid himself from me for years. You say his friends, those two traitorous pieces of vermin won't talk? Well then keep torturing them, to the point of death if you have too! I want to know what they know! In the meantime I will also attempt to flush out that rat myself by doing exactly what I did to get those other children to hand over their crests without a fight. I will force him to give me the last piece of the jigsaw by attacking what matters to him most. HIS FAMILY!"

…

**The morning – Kamiya Apartment**

Kari, Tai and Agumon were sitting in their bedroom waiting for Gennai. He'd sent them an email last night telling them that he was coming to speak to them in the morning about something very important.

"I wonder he could want?" asked Agumon aloud.

"Maybe it's something to do with Mr TK?" suggested Kari.

"Maybe," nodded Tai. "Or it could have something to do with Myotismon."

They continued to chat lightly in their room about Gennai, Digimon and the digital world. Their dad was at work and their mom had gone grocery shopping and wouldn't be back for a few hours. This was highly convenient for them as it would mean Gennai would have more time to talk them without fear of being interrupted (they were still very apprehensive of things from the digital world).

At about 11am their visitor finally arrived. There was a light knock on the patio door which lead onto the balcony.

"That must be him," declared Tai jumping up from his bed and running to pull back the curtain. Sure enough, the little digital guardian was standing on the other side of the glass. Tai opened the door to let him in.

"Hi Gennai," he smiled.

"Hi kids," Gennai replied with a hearty smile of his own.

He stepped inside and greeted both Kari and Agumon who in turn warmly greeted him back. They all eventually settled down to talk seriously though

"I suppose you're all wondering why I've come here to talk to you specifically?" he asked them.

"Yes," all three replied in unison.

"Well, the answer is simple. Kari, the time has come for you to meet your digimon partner."

"My digimon partner?" Kari oohed.

"Yes," he nodded. "It's taken a little while for me to get her here but we've finally done it. Kari my child, meet your partner. Gatomon,"

"Gatomon?"

The door opened again and they all looked over to see who was entering. It was a digimon. She was white and strongly resembled a cat. She had big blue eyes and a sweet face.

"Hello," the digimon smiled nervously. "I'm Gatomon."

Kari walked over to her whilst Tai and Agumon watched carefully. Kari politely held her hand out for Gatomon and smiled;

"Hi I'm Kari."

Gatomon beamed and enthusiastically accepted her handshake.

"Nice to finally meet you Kari. I've know an awful lot about you, I'm glad we finally get to talk to each other."

"How do you know about Kari?" asked Tai suspiciously. He'd never even seen this digimon before, how could she know about his sister?

"We'll get to that in a minute," Gennai answered. "First, let's just get the hellos out of the way. Kari, Gatomon, you two are partners. You're destined to stand alongside each other and help in the fight against darkness, just like Tai and Agumon here. Gatomon can digivolve but unfortunately it's not possible without your crest Kari. Gatoman, as Kari's partner it is now your sworn duty to protect her at all costs. Is that clear?"

"Yes, completely," Gatomon nodded.

"Good," said Gennai. "Now, why don't you tell these three more about yourself?"

"Okay. You see, I used to be a member of Myotismon's army of evil digimon. I used to serve just like everyone else, all his mindless minions. He told me to help track you, the digi-destineds down and I tried to do so. For years I searched for the one you know as TK in the digital world. Thankfully, one day I saw the light and managed to escape Myotismon's evil clutches. I've been working with Gennai here ever since whilst still acting as a double agent of sorts."

"Did you ever manage to find out where TK was all that time?" asked Tai.

"No," answered Gatomon shaking her head. "I didn't ever manage to track him down which is just as well, or otherwise I'd have handed him over to Myotismon who would have shown him no mercy. Now I know he's back in the human world with the rest of you, only all of your crests have been taken by Myotismon."

"That's right," said Kari. "Myotismon took our moms and dads and said he'd hurt them if we didn't give him our crests."

"I know," said Gatomon. "He's willing to stop at nothing to get his hands on the crests. He needs them for his master plan."

"What's his master plan?" asked Agumon.

"He wants to use the power of all the crests to help him digivolve into his mega-level form," she explained. "Then he'll be powerful enough to control both this world and the digital world. I know he has seven crests right now so that means he's one short."

"Yeah, TK's crest. The crest of hope," explained Matt. "Patamon held on to it for years. Now Matt has it."

"Myostismon cannot be allowed to take possession of the final crest," Gennai now stressed to them all. "If he does he will be able to digivolve and if he does so then there's likely no stopping him."

"Then what do we do?" asked Tai. "We only have one crest and only TK can use it and he told me himself that he didn't want to come back here to this world. He said he didn't want to be a digi-destined anymore and didn't care, he told me that himself!"

"I'm currently dealing with TK," Gennai told him. "I have spoken to TK at length since you last saw him Tai and rest assured I am working on getting him to come back and fight."

"What if he doesn't though?" wondered Agumon gravely.

"Like I said, leave me to deal with him," Gennai stated firmly. It was clear to them all that he knew something about TK that they didn't but there was no point in asking as he'd likely not say.

"Okay," said Gatomon now awkwardly again. "I guess that's it really. Is there anything else you want to ask me Kari?"

"No," said Kari with her trademark cheerfulness. "I think you pretty much told us everything Gatomon. Come on, I'll show you around our apartment now that you're going to be staying here with us. I'll introduce you to mom and dad later when they get home."

Kari and Gatomon walked towards the door and exited to make their way to the living room. Tai and Agumon stayed behind to talk to Gennai.

"Is Gatomon up to the job of protecting Kari?" Tai asked seriously. "I mean it Gennai, I need to know that here digimon is strong enough to get her out of trouble should she ever need it."

"I absolutely assure you Gatomon is both capable and reliable," promised Gennai. "She is without doubt one of the best and most interesting digimon I've ever come across. She and Kari will be great together. I must go now boys, I have other things to deal with."

"Is it TK?" Agumon asked.

"Perhaps," replied Gennai coyly. "He will join the fight against Myotismon, I am confident of that. Until then, please do not inform Matt or his parents about what I've told you about TK. I've already informed them about the situation with TK and they of course we deeply upset to hear what was happened with him."

"I can imagine," Tai said sadly. He felt so sorry for the family after he'd tried to hide the truth from them.

"TK will go to them soon but they must not expect his arrival," Gennai told them. "For now, take care of yourselves boys. I'll be in touch."

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry for the delay, just been mad busy the last few days. Went for something different and went back some viewpoints we've not heard of in a while. More chapters coming up soon. Please rate and review and most importantly keep reading. It's highly appreciated. Thanks.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Hi everyone, time for the next chapter as promised. Before I begin I want to clear a few things up. It's recently come to my attention that I've dropped a massive clanger with this story. I've been referring to the city in where everyone lives as Oikawa. I now that's incorrect. It's actually Obadia isn't it? Oikawa is actually that creepy guy from 02, I got them mixed up. I'm very sorry for this glaring mistake, hopefully it didn't confuse people.**

**I know I make quite a lot of mistakes when I'm typing and I'm sorry. The reason I do this isn't because I can't spell, it's because I type very fast and I often press the wrong button. I also make that mistake I just mentioned of calling characters the wrong name. Again, I'm very sorry. I write these stories at night before bed so admittedly I don't proof read them very carefully. I have a quick scan through and if I don't spot anything obvious then I just publish. Again, sorry. I promise I will work on these mistakes, I sincerely hope that they haven't hampered your enjoyment of this story. **

**By the way, when you see this ….. after paragraphs it's actually meant to be a line that signals a change of scene. Just when I publish the line is replaced by a few dots for some reason, it's very confusing I know.**

**I hope I cleared everything up for you. Please now enjoy reading on.**

**Chapter 23**

**Ishida Apartment**

Matt was in the bathroom applying the usual hair gel to his hair but he barely concentrating on what he was doing. His mind was racing with what had happened last night and what he'd seen (or heard more appropriately, it was dark).

His mother had gotten up in the night, sneaked into his father's room and hadn't come back out again. She'd spent the night with his father in his room and Matt was left flabbergasted. He wasn't fool though, he was old enough to understand what must have been going on.

He had noticed his parents being strange to each other the last few days but he'd assumed it was of course because of the awkward feeling between them, they had divorced after all. But now he realised there was more to it than that. They must have been growing closer again during the days his mother had been here living with them. All three had, in their own ways, been dealing with their grief for TK and trying their best to support each other. His mother and father but have been helping each other in ways that they didn't express when he and Gabumon were around. It was gross to think about but he couldn't help it.

He couldn't work out how he'd feel if his mom and dad ever got back together, he'd never ever considered it to be an even remotely plausible possibility. TK, or at least the little TK he knew, would have been absolutely overjoyed. He little TK had always naively hoped it would actually happen one day and Matt never had the heart to discourage him. Who knows what the current TK that Gennai described would think. Would he even care?

He heard a knock on the on the bathroom door.

"Matt, are you almost done in there? I need to shave," came the voice of his father.

"Yeah, I'm done," Matt replied putting some finishing touches on his hair. He rinsed his hands and then unlocked the door. His father was standing on the side and had a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Morning son," he yawned.

"Morning," said Matt shortly. He then slid past his father who proceeded to enter the bathroom and close the door behind him. Once he's heard the lock being re-turned Matt turned around to look at it. His father didn't seem any different, he just looked a little weary (though that could be from worry).

He turned around and spotted his mother over by the sink in her dressing gown. She turned around with her own cup of coffee in her hand and saw him there. She smiled and said;

"Morning Matt, did you sleep okay?"

"Yeah fine," he replied quietly. He resisted the urge to ask her the same question. Thankfully Gabumon then walked in off the balcony giving Matt and excuse to talk to someone else.

"Come on Gabumon, we need to go out," Matt told him.

"Where are we going?" Gabumon asked.

"To look for TK again," he replied bluntly.

"Maybe you should stay here," Nancy said now. "I went back to my apartment yesterday, TK didn't come on so I doubt he'd go anywhere else. Maybe we should wait for Mr Gennai to come and tell us where he is?"

"No Mom," Matt said shaking his head. "I promised TK I'd come back him and I will keep that promise, even if it is seven years late. I'll go to him, even it means looking all over the city."

Nancy sighed and looked down into her mug. She said quietly without raising her head;

"You know I'm sorry for what happened the other night aren't you Matt?" she asked. "I was just upset and lost my composure. Worrying about TK and where he is and what's happened to him, I've been going out of my mind."

"I know mom," he reassured. "But what you said was right. I left TK and I should never have done that. I'm his big brother and I promised I'd always look after him and I failed. Now I'll do anything to make it up to him, even though he now hates me. That's what Gennai said."

He said that last part with a great deal of sadness in his voice. Gennai had specifically said the reason that TK was so reluctant to come back was because he was angry with him for leaving. He felt betrayed and it broke Matt's heart that his brother, whom he loved more than anything, felt that way.

"I see, well be careful then, the both of you," she told them.

"We will," Matt nodded heading towards the door.

"See you later Ms Takaishi," added Gabumon politely. "We'll let you and Matt's dad know if we find anything." He then followed Matt to the door. Nancy watched them as they left, her thoughts racing. He still didn't know about her Hiroaki. What they'd been up to. They didn't want him to get his hopes up.

….

**A little later **

Matt and Gabumon (hiding beneath one of Matt's coats) were walking at a fast pace down the high street even though hadn't actually yet decided where they were heading for to look. Gabumon decided to ask.

"Matt, where are we going?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," Matt replied shortly as they continued to walk. "I'm trying to think about what places TK could possibly go to?"

Gabumon understood and went silent again, merely keeping up with his friend as they walked now. Matt continued to think.

"Come on Matt, you know TK. Where he go? Where does he like to visit?"

A very nasty thought struck him though. Well, a realization really. He didn't know TK at all. Not the TK he'd grown up into now. He wasn't the little boy he knew so well anymore, he was more a less a stranger now. He had no clue what this older TK's interests would be. Would he like the same things that he liked? Or would he be completely different as a person? It hurt to even think about it.

"I know he used to be crazy about video games," he told himself now. TK used to complain about how much he missed playing his video games when they were in the digital world with everyone else? Maybe he still liked them now and could be the local arcade. It was worth a shot at least.

"Come on Gabumon, I've decided where we're going," he said.

"Where?" asked the digimon.

"The local arcade. We'll start there."

….

**Even later**

Matt and Gabumon came out of the arcade having no success in finding TK, he hadn't been in there. Seeing as Matt had no recent photographs of what TK would look like he couldn't ask any of the staff members where his brother had been in there recently so him and Gabumon were left to do nothing but kick their heels.

"Well, it was a worth a try Matt," Gabumon offered as they stood outside thinking about their next move.

Matt just sighed.

"I'm starting to think I'll NEVER get to see him again," Matt said glumly. He was very down.

"DON'T SAY THAT MATT," Gabumon urged. "Of course you'll see him again. And when you do you can start reconciling with him. He may be upset at first but TK's a good boy, he'll forgive you in time I'm sure. And when he does we can all fight Myotismon together as a team, like we used to in the digital world."

Matt raised a slight smile to Gabumon's attempts to encouragement.

"Thanks for trying to cheer me up Gabumon," he said. "But I know there's no guarantee that any of that stuff you just said will ever happen. Still, I have to keep trying. Come on."

With that he led Gabumon away from the arcade and off down the street as he tried to think. Well and truly back to square one.

"Come on, we'll cut through this alleyway Gabumon," he said now. "It leads to a café on Seymour Street. We'll get something to eat."

"Sounds good to me," Gabumon smiled now. He was feeling quite hungry. They walked down the secluded alleyway that was empty except for a few trash cans. All a sudden though, somebody who'd been following them for a while now, finally made his move.

"GET THEM!" roared a voice. Before Matt and Gabumon could react they were set upon by dozens of Bakemon who'd seemingly come out of nowhere.

"ARRRGGH!" roared Matt as he was surrounded and set upon.

"MATT!" cried Gabumon trying to aid his friend but he too was surrounded.

"GABUMON, DIGIVOLVE TOO…." he roared. But it was no use. He didn't have the strength due to the lack of food he'd eaten. He couldn't digivolve into Garurumon.

"GABUMON!" Matt cried out as the Bakemon bungled a net over him. At the same moment Phantomon appeared (he was the one who'd ordered the Bakemon to attack. He threw his chain it wrapped itself tightly around Gabumon's neck.

"ARRRRGGGH!"

"Hahaha, this too easy," laughed the evil digimon. He pulled on the chain and began to choke Gabumon. Matt continued to try and fight his way out.

"GET AWAY FROM ME YOU CREEPS" he shouted desperately swinging out at them. It was all in vain though as he overpowered by their sheer numbers. They bungled him completely into the net and began tightening it up.

Phantomon then began to swing his chain (and Gabumon) around in a fast circle. He spun around several times to build up some speed before finally releasing Gabumon from around the neck. The digimon was sent flying and he crashed face first into those old trash cans at the other end of the alley.

"GABUMON!" roared Matt again as he watched on helplessly.

"We've got him boss," declared on of the Bakemon.

"Hahaha, good. Now let's take him back to Lord Myotismon."

"Yes sir."

With that Phantomon and Bakemon (with Matt as their prisoner) drifted off into the sky, leaving a beaten Gabumon.

"WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME!?" Matt demanded now and they drifted off.

"To Lord Myotismon you wretched child," informed Phantomon. "He'd like to have a little talk with you, MATT."

Matt was astonished that Phantomon knew his name, it meant he must have been target specifically. What would Myotismon want with him? He already had his crest, could it be to do with TK and the fact Myotismon now knew he was TK's brother?

**Yet more suspense eh? Hope you're enjoying this. More to come soon. It's bubbling away quite nicely I feel, setting up for the big climatic chapters perfectly because this was another hype duty chapter. Please keep reading and please rate and review. Until the next chapter then.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Time for chapter 24. It follows on directly from the cliff-hanger ending of the last chapter. Please forgive any spelling and grammar mistakes or any mis-used words and names I accidently put in the wrong places. I'm awful for it I know, hopefully it doesn't spoil your enjoyment though.**

**Chapter 24**

Gabumon limped heavily towards the apartment where he'd been living. He'd been hurt badly by the Bakemon attack, but the emotional pain he felt far outweighed any physical pain. He'd failed to defend Matt. He'd let his partner down when he needed them most and allowed Myotismon's servants to kidnap him, now because of it Matt could be in mortal danger.

He'd reached the elevator of the apartment complex, pressed the button to call for it and then leant against the doors to catch his breath. He'd been beaten by badly and had struggled to make it all the way back here. He was in a lot of pain but knew he had to make it back to the apartment to tell Matt's mom and dad about what had happened. As he took his deep breathes he felt the doors of the elevator slide open and because of the pain he was in his reactions were not quick enough. Before he could steady himself he tumbled over at losing his object to lean on and ended flat on his face, his body lying in the middle of the elevator doorway. Gabumon took a couple more breathes before finally losing consciousness.

….

**A couple of minutes later**

Izzy continued to press the elevator button but after deciding that it wasn't going to come anytime soon he decided to just take the stairs. He'd been sent by his mother to go and get some groceries from the local convenience store, Tentomon had remained behind in his bedroom. He only planned to take a few minutes.

After he eventually reached the bottom of the apartment complex he exited the stairway and made his way over to where the front door of the building was. As he walked past a truly bizarre sight met his eyes. Right by the door was the elevator and it's door were open. Well, half open anyway. There was a person, a child by the looks of it, lying unconscious in the middle of the doorway floor which was preventing the doors from closing and the whole elevator from moving. Izzy rushed over to help the person and when he reached him he got an even bigger shock. It wasn't a human lying there, it was GABUMON.

"GABUMON," he exclaimed in shock. "What happened to you? Where's Matt?"

Gabumon was unresponsive. Izzy looked around and noticed nobody else in the hallway. He must have been the first person to walk through here and find Gabumon so he couldn't have been lying here very long. He helped pick the rookie digimon up and let him lean on him for support.

"It's okay buddy, I got you," he whispered in the unconscious digimon's ear. He carried him into the lift and clicked the button to take them back up to Izzy's apartment.

….

Gabumon was lying down on the bed and being allowed to rest. Izzy, his mom and Tentomon stood over him.

"What do you think happened to him?" asked his mom as she wiped Gabumon's head with a wet cloth.

"I don't know," Izzy said shaking his head. "I wonder where Matt is?"

"I think it's safe to assume that whatever attacked Gabumon got Matt," added Tentomon now gravely.

"Where does Matt and Gabumon here live?" asked Izzy's mother.

"A few floors up," answered Izzy. "I didn't want to take him up there because I didn't want to alarm Matt's mom and dad."

"Well they have to know if their son is missing," she told him now.

"I know," Izzy nodded. "Let's just take a moment to think here first mom. Hopefully if Gabumon comes around soon we can ask him what happened. For now, I'm going to call everyone else and call a meeting so they can know what's happened."

"Good idea Izzy," nodded Tentomon.

"I'll go make Gabumon some hot soup," added his mother now. "I'll suppose he'll be hungry when he wakes up. People always are when they've had a rough nap."

She then left the room and headed to the kitchen. Izzy followed her out of the door and headed towards the phone. He had some important calls to make.

Izzy called up Tai & Kari, Sora, Joe and Mimi. He asked for them to come around to his apartment because it was an emergency. All agreed to come right away.

"Some more people are coming over mom," Izzy told her after he'd made his last call.

"Okay Izzy, how many?" she asked as she poured some hot soup into a bowl for Gabumon.

"5 friends and their digimon," he told her.

"Oh well, that's quite a lot," she mused.

"They're coming over to see Gabumon," he told her. "They won't be here long. They'll see Gabumon and then we'll go somewhere else to talk."

"Okay," she nodded. They then made their way back into Izzy's bedroom.

….

**Later**

Within in the hour everyone had arrived and all were left in shock at what had happened to Gabumon. He had managed to regain consciousness but was still very weak. He explained to Izzy and Tentomon (before everyone had arrived here) that he'd been attacked by Myotismon's minions the Bakemon and Phantomon and that they'd taken Matt. Sparing the poor digimon the difficulty at having to explain this horrid event twice Izzy promised that take the burden and explain to everyone, the other kids and Matt's mom and dad, what happened. For now Gabumon needed rest to recover.

When everyone arrived they all somehow managed to squeeze into Izzy's modest bedroom to see Gabumon but by that point he was unconscious again. Izzy (with Tentomon's help as ever) decided to explain what happened. Once he'd finished, everyone was left open mouthed.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!" Tai said now slamming his fist down on the table. "HE'S TAKEN MATT PRISONER. WHY DOES HE KEEP AMBUSHING US LIKE THIS!"

"Tai, please calm down," Sora pleaded now.

"Yeah come on Tai, I don't like it when you get mad," Kari added with a sad voice.

"Maybe we should all go somewhere else to talk," Izzy suggested now. "This room and the whole apartment really is too small for us. Let's go somewhere else."

"Yeah, let's go for a drink or something," Mimi suggested.

"Sounds like a plan," piped up Palmon.

…...

**Back in the Ishida apartment**

Nancy and Hiroaki were both now dressed and were having some lunch. Today was Nancy's day off and Hiroaki was going to do the evening shift later. Both were having an uneasy discussion, about each other.

"You don't think Matt suspects anything do you?" she asked him now.

"No," Hiroaki answered shaking his head. "He doesn't. He hasn't mentioned anything to me and I'd be able to tell if there was something. I think he's just upset about everything that's going on."

"Well, we can't let him get wind or anything. Or Gabumon. We can't let him him get his hopes up. Or TK for that matter."

"I understand that Nancy but you have to admit, this is going shall I say…. well?" he asked her mischievously.

She merely smiled at his suggestion. Before she answered him there was a knock at the front door which interrupted their conversation.

"Hold that thought," he told her. "If this is Matt we'll continue this later." He then headed off to answer the door.

"Hello," he said as he opened the door. He saw no one there.

"Down here," said a voice. Hiroaki and saw the short old man he's spoken too several days earlier standing there.

"You," he mouthed.

"Yes," replied Gennai. "Me."

"What do you want? Is it about TK!? Do you know where he is!?"

"You'll find out," Gennai merely replied. "For now I need both you and your sons' mother to go the cafe on Seymour Street. There will be people waiting for you both there who will tell you something that you both need to here. Make sure you bring that crest that I gave you a few days ago, it should be in Matt's room."

"Wait! What?" was all Hiroaki could splutter in response. But before he knew there was a little "poof" and Gennai merely vanished into thin air. He left amazed and speechless.

"Who it is Hiroaki?" he heard Nancy call from inside.

"Come on Nancy," he called back. "We need to go."

"Go? Go where? What's happening?"

"We have to go to Seymour Street right now, I'll explain on the way."

…

**Seymour Street – coffee shop**

The digidestined had all gone to the local café for somewhere where they could have a proper talk about things and were sat around a table that huddled right underneath the stair way which lead to the upstairs floor (it was a big café). It was so their conversation couldn't be heard by other diners. The digimon however had all decided to stay behind and be with their fellow, Gabumon to watch over him.

"So he said he and Matt were ambushed?" asked Sora to get clarification. Izzy nodded in reply.

"Yes, Gabumon was pretty weak when I found him. He said they were attacked in an alleyway by a gang of Bakemon and Phantomon. They beat him up and took Matt away."

"But why?" asked Joe trying to figure it out. "We already gave Myotismon our crests, why would he kidnap Matt? What else could he want from us? Do you think it has something to do with TK?"

"It could very well do yes. I think Matt was specifically targeted."

"Then what do we do now?" asked Mimi.

"I don't know," said Izzy. He then added glumly; "I guess we're going to have to tell Mr Ishida and Ms Takaishi. They have to be told."

"Oh boy, what a riot that's gonna be," Tai sighed. "First TK gets lost and know Matt's been kidnapped. They're going to be jumping to the stars."

As if by magic, at that moment Hiroaki and Nancy themselves walked in the front door. This was where Gennai had told them to come. They stepped inside and found it almost completely empty.

"Over there," said Nancy. She pointed out the table where the digi-destined were all huddled together talking.

"It's all the kids, he must have told them to come too."

"Let's get over there then," said Hiroaki who was straight to the point. They both walked over to the table.

"Hey look," said Kari to everyone else as they approached. They all looked up and saw Hiroaki and Nancy who reached them.

"Hey kids," said Hiroaki. "It's good to all see you again." He looked around the table and noticed that neither of his sons was among the group.

"Where's Matt?" he asked. "Isn't he with all of you?"

Everyone at the table went very quiet. Nancy then spoke;

"We were told to come here by Gennai, the man from the digital world. He told us that we should come here because there was something important waiting for us. Is that why you kids are here too?"

"Gennai told you to come here?" asked Tai.

"Yes," said Nancy nodding. "Just a few minutes ago. We came straight here."

"I'll take it from here," announced the voice of the man Gennai himself. Using his classic old trick of just popping up out of thin air, he appeared on the stairway above them.

"GENNAI!" everyone gasped in unison.

"Yes," he nodded. "I called both of you (he was talking to both Hiroaki and Nancy) here because there is something you both must know. It involves Matt.

"What is it!?" demanded Hiroaki worriedly now. He looked from Gennai, to the kids at the table and then back at Gennai.

"I'm sorry to tell you both this and to confirm this to all of you (he looked at the digi-destineds). But what Gabumon told you is true. Matt has been kidnapped by Myotismon."

"NO!" gasped Nancy putting her hands to her mouth. "Not him too, I can't lose another!"

"HOW DO WE GET MATT BACK?" Hiroaki demanded angrily.

"I'll tell you," answered Gennai calmly. "All of you at the table are digi-destineds. It is up to you to fight evil and prevent dark digimon from succeeding. You can't do any of that without your crests though because otherwise your own digimon can't digivolve. It's because of that all of you pretty much ineffective against the dark right now."

"Yeah well what can we do then?" asked Tai now. "How are we supposed to stop Myotismon?"

Gennai smiled lightly.

"If you're all to stop Myotismon, recover your crests, rescue Matt and truly defeat the darkness, you will need the help of another. A person you've worked with before."

With that he looked up to the top of the stairs. The kids and Hiroaki and Nancy all did the same. They all watched as they saw a pair of feet appear on the steps. A person began to slowly walk down the stairs. This person had been sat upstairs enjoying his own drink and snacks as he waited to make his grand entrance. As he began to descend the steps they all watched as he slowly came into view. He was western, cowboy style boots, a pair of classically made Levi jeans and an expensive looking leather jack over a plain black shirt. Then his head and shoulders came into view. He had a digimon sat upon his shoulder blade and it was a digimon they all recognised. They all left absolutely stunned as the person came to a halt beside Gennai on the stairs and then looked down at them, taking in the scene. He opened his mouth to speak;

"So tell me everyone. What's become of that brother of mine?"

Trowa/TK then brought a bottle water that he had in his hand up to his mouth and took a gulp. When he'd finished he saw how flawed everyone was by his sudden appearance. He let out a mischievous laugh in response.

**DUN-DUN-DUN! What a cliff-hanger ending eh? More to soon come I promise you. Didn't I tell you the good stuff was coming? Well it's about to come thick and fast I promise you, just keep reading and keep following, favouriting and reviewing! Until the next chapter then.**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey guys, hope you enjoyed reading that last chapter even half as much as I enjoyed writing. I had the moment at the end pictured in my head for weeks, finally got to write it. Yes in response to a review, it's inspired largely by the ending of Pirates of the Carribean 2, I've always thought Captain Barbosa's shock return was so badass. I knew I wanted to do the same thing with this fic.**

**Anyway, lots happened in the last chapter so let's pick it up where I left. Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes and please enjoy.**

**Chapter 25**

TK continued to start down at them waiting for someone to say something. Gennai beside him decided to say nothing. Everyone below them had open jaws from what, or to be more appropriate, who they were looking at. Realising that nobody had yet answered his question, TK laughed again.

"What is it, do none of you know who am or something?"

He asked that question in jest, he knew that of course they ALL recognised him. He just wanted somebody to say something.

Tai, so often the leader of the digi-destined and the one lead with his head-first personality, was the one to finally speak up (he was also slightly less shocked, he'd met this TK before after all).

"So, you came back after all?" he asked with a wry smile.

Relieved, TK turned to him (he was desperately trying not to look at his mom and dad who were staring at him still frozen in disbelief. He actually felt very awkward) and answered;

"Yes," he nodded. "I'm not going to allow Myotismon to wreak havoc on this world or the digital world, it's time somebody stood up to him and I feel up to the task of doing it."

Whilst he and Tai had this question and answer and all the other digi-destineds looked on in awe, both Hiroaki and Nancy only had one thought in their heads as they looked at their second son.

"It's him... it's truly him…." was all Nancy could keep telling herself.

"Oh my God…. TK…. he's changed more than I imagined….." was was Hiroaki was thinking.

Both were desperate to run over and hug the living day lights out of him but something held the both of them back. It couldn't be helped, but this boy to them was a stranger. They knew he'd be older, that he'd aged considerably, Gennai had told them both that. But it wasn't until they both saw him now in the flesh, taller and his features no longer so little boyish, that reality finally hit home. This kid was effectively a stranger to them. Yet it was heart-breaking for them both to be feeling that way, he was their SON.

"Right on TK…. er I mean…." Tai remembered that when he spoke to TK last he'd told him to call him by different name, though he couldn't remember what it was.

"That'll be fine," TK quickly reassured him as the other kids all raised their eyebrows, all of them wondering what Tai had been hinting at.

"Okay. So, you're gonna help us get our crests back?"

"I guess I have too," TK replied dryly. "You guys ain't got a prayer of stopping him without them. Thing is though, I haven't got my own crest. Pat tells me he gave it to dear old Matt."

With that, all eyes turned back to Hiroaki and Nancy who still hadn't said a word to their son (who finally brought himself to look at them; albeit very sheepishly. Nancy finally managed to find her voice.

"TK…." she said, he voice just a whisper and tears beginning to form in her eyes. TK's bravery quickly abandoned him and he looked away again.

"Son….." Hiroaki let escape his mouth now.

Sensing a heart-felt moment, Tai stood up from his chair and headed towards the door to leave. It was a very suttle hint to all the other kids that this was an emotional moment and that they should give these guys some privacy. It worked exactly how it intended it too and very quietly everyone else stood up too and followed him, all of their heads spinning from what had just happened. This moment was very similar to the one a few days earlier at the restaurant when they'd all left Hiroaki, Nancy and their son alone to talk, the only difference being this time it was TK instead of Matt.

When everyone had finally left (Gennai and Patamon had both stayed but had faded in the background so that their presence was felt but still giving these three a chance to talk openly) TK gulped and finally brought his eyes back up to look at his parents. He'd been waiting for this moment for 7 long, painful years. As a little boy, the one thing he wanted most of all was for his parents to get back together again so they could all be a happy family. Now he had the both of them together in front of him but he had no idea what to do.

"Hi mom," he finally managed to bring himself to say very nervously. "Hi dad."

Both were stood transfixed, the emotion inside of them reaching bursting point. Finally, Nancy allowed it to spill over.

"TK," she exclaimed, the tears falling unashamedly. She burst forward and rushed towards TK to embrace him. TK was caught completely off guard and out of instinct he leapt backward to prevent her from grabbing him. She noticed this and halted, her face wet with tears but he expression one of surprise at his actions. Why he had he just done that? Did he not want her to hug him?

"TK….." she aloud said again, this time almost to herself.

TK didn't answer her. He merely continued to back away out of not knowing what do to with himself really. He was asking himself, why had he just done that?

"What's the matter?" Nancy asked still crying. "Please, come here."

TK didn't answer her. He merely dropped his head to look at his shoes. He wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow him up, anything to get away from this awkwardness.

"TK," said Hiroaki stepping forward himself now. "Son, don't be afraid, it's us."

TK didn't raise his head. Hiroaki cleared his throat and spoke on. He was talking to both TK and Nancy with this really.

"Look TK, we know about the digital world. We know you spent a long time there, all alone without anybody and because that you feel nervous. You've gotten so used to not knowing us and because of that you feel uneasy right now. That's a natural thing for anybody. But please, we've been so worried about you and missed you so much."

Hiroaki Ishida was a man who never cried. It was one of the reasons Matt himself had always tried to act so tough and grown up, it was partly based and trying to be like his father. A man of steel. Now though, Hiroaki's own eyes were beginning to feel watery. He loved both his sons with all his heart but because he barely even got to see TK, because he wasn't the one who got to raise him, he always had a soft spot for his youngest son. When he'd first been told what had happened to TK he'd been utterly crushed. The thought that he may never get to see his little boy ever again completely destroyed him. His heart had been aching but for the sake of Nancy and Matt he'd managed to hold himself together and be strong. Now though that he finally had his son back he finally let him raw emotions overwhelm him, much like Nancy.

"TK please, don't be afraid. Or nervous. It's us, your mom and dad. We've missed you so badly, we were terrified we'd never see you again."

TK finally raised his head and looked at his parents. His mom was crying and so was his dad. He'd never seen his father this emotional before. It did nothing to help him keep a lid on his own feelings.

"Mom, dad…." He managed to whisper. "It's….. it's good to see you both."

Nancy sighed with relieve and rushed forwards again. This time, TK allowed her to fling her arms around him. Hiroaki smiled and slowly made his way over to join their embrace.

Meanwhile whilst all this was going on, from the sidelines Patamon and Gennai watched the emotional scene. Both smiled at its happy conclusion.

"I told you he'd come around," Gennai whispered with a smile.

"I know you did," Patamon replied who was starting to cry himself. "I'm so happy for them."

"Now we need to rescue Matt," Gennai told him. "He's been captured by Myotismon. TK doesn't know this but I'm going to tell you, Myotismon also captured TK's two other friends."

"Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon?"

"Yes, Myotismon took them both in order to question them about TK and his crest. You see, he now knows he's one crest short."

"TK's going to be upset when he finds out, he's very close to Gotusmon and Pumpkinmon and he'd do anything for them, I know that first hand."

"It only makes the task at hand even more vital. You and TK must not only try to stop Myotismon in order to get back the other digi-destined's crests. You must also rescue those he's holding prisoner."

"Well, if TK needed anymore motivation then that's it. Myotismon has his brother and two of his best friends. He's going to be very upset when he finds out."

"I know, but let's not tell him just now. Let him and his mother and father enjoy their moment. They've all waited a long time for this, especially TK himself.

Patamon nodded in agreement and the both of them watched as TK finally released his mother and then hugged his father. Both felt so happy for them, as did all the other digi-destined kids. TK had his parents back, Nancy and Hiroaki had their not so little boy.

**Thanks for reading guys. Probably the most emotional chapter yet I think. It's a shorter one this I know but it was really just about TK and Nancy and Hiroaki kind of having their reunion that's been building for about 20 chapters now. Get it out the way so we can move forward with the story, that sort of thing if you understand. If it were in an anime episode it would be a scene that's 5-10 mins long. I've said before I like each chapter to basically be like half an episode if it were made for TV.**

**We'll get back to business next week were the fun and game begins again. Hope you're all enjoying this and are still interested. Please keep favouriting, following and reviewing, it's what keeps me going. Next chapter should be dropped early next week. Until then, see ya later**.


	26. Chapter 26

Hey guys, time for the next chapter. Sorry it's been a bit of a wait it's just I decided to take a week off to recharge my batteries. I know I promised another chapter the day after I posted the last one but I just figured I needed and deserved a little rest. It's finally here now so let's get to it.

Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes and most of all, please enjoy.

Matt lay on a cold stone floor shivering. He had been blindfolded and had his hands bound behind his back. He'd been left in a very cold, obviously secluded spot by the digimon who'd kidnapped him. He wasn't frightened but he was nervous about what had happened. He and Gabumon had been ambushed and his digimon friend had been unable to digivolve to fight back. Poor Gabumon had been overpowered and beaten down and the Bakemon had bundled him, Matt, away. It didn't take a genius to work out why they'd done this. These were Myotismon's evil lackeys, obviously he was the one behind all this.

As he lay there thinking more fears began to occur to him. What if Myotismon had got his TK too? Maybe that was the reason he hadn't been able to find his brother the last few days, what if he'd been kidnapped by the Bakemon also? What about his parents? How would they react when he didn't come home? And what of Gabumon, was he alright? Would he be able to get help?

Matt suddenly heard a door close by open which caused him to immediately sit up. He heard footsteps as whoever opened the door entered and began to walk towards him. He felt the presence of a very tall person standing over him and quickly leaned his bad up straight against the wall, bracing himself for anything that might happen.

A hand then slowly lifted away his blindfold. Matt looked up and was greeted with a truly scary sight. It was Myotismon standing over and looking down upon him, a very evil smile etched on his face. On his shoulder stood Demi-Devimon. A quick glance around the room told him that they appeared to be in some dark storage room that had no windows and only one door. Apart from boxes and old office equipment in the corner, the room appeared to be quite empty. He still had no idea where exactly he could be but from the equipment he'd guess an old building. Trouble was, there was about a million of these all over the city.

Myotismon began to talk;

"So here we are, one of the mighty digi-destined children reduced to this. Cowering at my fight," he laughed.

"I'm not cowering!" Matt shot back immediately, his voice actually quite clear and strong. "I'm not afraid of a creep like you!"

Myotismon stopped laughing and instead began to frown. Demi-Devimon, sensing his master's sudden change of mood, hopped off of Myotismon's shoulders and was suddenly very nervous.

"Brave one aren't you?" Myotismon said darkly. "Well you little brat we'll see how brave you are once we begin the process I have planned."

"What process? What are you talking about Myotismon?" Matt demanded, still not backing down and showing weakness. Because of this Myotismon lost his composure. He suddenly raised his hand and smacked Matt hard across the face knocking the blonde boy down. He lay face down on the floor completely dizzy from the strike, the side of his face feeling like it had been bashed in by a hammer.

"Don't you dare talk back to me like that you filthy little worm!" snarled Myotismon now. "You digi-destineds are nothing but vermin. Vermin I will eradicate. You are just the first. And next it'll be that cowardly brother of yours."

At the mention of his brother Matt rolled over to stare back up at Myotismon.

"What… what… what have you done with TK?" he asked, his jaw still very sore.

"Nothing yet," Myotismon answered. "But when I get my hands on him I will make sure he suffers, as well as all your other friends. I'm a hunter, they're the prey and you're the bait."

"What do you mean?" Matt asked.

"You'll see," Myotismon answered before lifting the blindfold and putting it back on Matt's face, blinding him again. Matt then heard him walk away and exit back through the door. Demi-Devimon however, stayed behind to talk to Matt himself. Once the door had been closed he began to talk.

"You're Matt Ishida, ain't ya?" he asked in that irritating tone.

"What's it to you?" Matt replied.

"TK, he's your little brother ain't he?"

"If you hurt him then I'll…."

"You'll what kid? You ain't in the position to do anything. Besides, you'd been wasting your time trying to protect you brother, he hates your guts."

Matt didn't respond to that, he just sighed. I guess what Gennai about TK being angry was true after all.

"He hates your guys kid because you left him behind, back at that amusement park in the digital world. You promised you'd only be a couple of hours and you'd come back for him. But you let him down."

"How do you know all this?"

"Because TK told me. He told me himself."

"Why would TK ever talk to you."

"Because I'm the one who told TK that you'd never ever come back for him."

"You… you did what!?"

Demi - Devimon began to laugh. Yeah, I told that little cry baby that you and all those other kids left him on purpose because you all hated him and didn't want him around anymore. And he bought it. Terribly upset was the poor little guy, sobbed his little heart out."

"You…. told him…. that I hated him!?

He'd been told that this had happened by Patamon several days ago when the little digimon was explaining his fall out with TK. However, Patamon hadn't gone into specific details about what happened exactly, it was obviously too painful a memory.

"I found the kid waiting on the shoreline with his little friend waiting for you," Demi-Devimon continued.

"He said he'd been there a whole week hoping you were going to come back for him. I told the little guy that he was on his own from now on. From there he fell out with that poof-ball who he was with and disappeared. My master spent years searching for him in the digital world but he always managed to slip through the net. That's why you're here now, Lord Myotismon wants to use you to draw him out because know he's back here in the human world."

"Alas, I'm not sure Lord Myotismon's plan will work though. As I said, you're brother resents you, I doubt he'd be in any hurry whatsoever to come here and rescue you. I think we'll have to kidnap someone else, someone he does care about. If there even still is one."

Matt was shaking with emotion. He was so angry and hurt, if his hands hadn't been bound he would have throttled Demi-Devimon right there. It was this sly, evil digimon's fault that TK now didn't like him anymore. He'd made up such vicious and spiteful lies, all too try and break up the digi-destined and destroy their brotherly relationship. And it appeared, to an extent, to have worked.

"You….. you bastard!" Matt roared furiously now.

"My my, such language?" tutted the bat digimon now. "There's no need for that. What would yours and TK's parents think? Well, I guess you'll never know because chances are you'll never see them again."

"You're wrong. My friends will come for me. Maybe not TK now that his head is full of your lies but my other friends will. They'll find me and they'll stop Myotismon. And one day me and TK will make up. I know it!"

"Quit dreaming kid," scoffed Demi-Devimon. "You need to stop watching so many movies that have happy endings because it's clearly clouding your vision of reality. Nobody's gonna find you unless we want them to find you. We dumped you digi-vice so they can't track you. Once Lord Myotismon realise that TK doesn't care that we have you he'll likely go after someone else in order to lure him out. By then though you'll likely have been taken care of because we'll have no use for you. Until then get comfy kid cause you're going nowhere."

With that Demi-Devimon took off and headed towards the door. He (just about) managed to use his talons to turn the door knob, open the door and exit, leaving Matt alone with nothing but his dark thoughts of fear and anger.

**Elsewhere…**

TK stood outside the café with both Nancy and Hiroaki having a very awkward conversation. The three were trying to break the ice with one another because this young man was essentially a stranger to these two adults.

"So, you two surprised at what you see?" he asked them bluntly taking a step back to let them take in his entire form. Both Nancy and Hiroaki looked up him and down again. He certainly didn't look like that little boy both of them knew so well. If anything, he looked more like Matt now. He too was very sleek and handsome with crystal blue eyes and a sharp nose. His blonde hair was slightly darker than it used to be when he was younger, now more of a dirty blonde. He was far taller than used to be too. He was now taller than Nancy was and came up to Hiroaki's shoulder when before he didn't reach his waist.

His clothes were far different too. Before he used to always wear little sweat shirts and little boy sneakers with a funny little hat to top it off. Now instead he was wearing no hat, an expensive looking leather jacket, jeans and most confusingly, western style boots. His whole outfit made him at first glance seem like a rebel, a tough kid. TK used to be the complete opposite of that.

"Where have you been all this time?" Hiroaki finally managed to clear his throat and ask his son.

"In the digital world," TK answered. "Surviving," he added.

"Who looked after you?" his mother asked quietly.

"I pretty much looked after myself," he told her. "I had no other choice."

"But, how did you take care yourself with none of us there for you?" she asked now. TK didn't like how she worded that question.

"Hey," he snapped now. "I don't need anyone to take care of me and I never did. I can look after myself, I spent ages telling all the other kids and Matt that. They obviously listened because they just abandoned me. Blame them for me getting stuck there."

"That isn't true TK," Hiroaki said now shaking his head. "They didn't abandon you, least of all Matt. They'd never do that, just they never got the chance to come back for you."

TK just scoffed at this notion.

"Don't make excuses for them," he told his father. "I don't want to hear any "we always cared about you," talk, that horse left the barn a while back. All I want to do now is just fight Myotismon and stop his evil plans, I don't care whatsoever about any of those guys in there. Or Matt for that matter."

He said his final sentence with a lot of finality in his voice to make sure both Nancy and Hiroaki got the message loud and clear. Both of them certaintly got it and it upset them both.

"TK sweetie, please don't say that," Nancy choked now as she started to well up. "There all you friends and Matt is your brother. They all care about you. And we love you."

TK didn't answer her, he merely store down at his boots again.

"TK, son…." Hiroaki stuttered now taking a step forwards. He moved forwards to put a hand on TK's shoulder but TK, as he did originally when Nancy tried to embrace him, moved away.

"I need time to think," he told them. "I'm going for a walk. I'll come back and see you both later."

With that he turned around and began to walk away, leaving his heartbroken parents in his wake.

"TK, WAIT!" Nancy burst out as she moved to follow after him.

"No ma'am," said a voice now from behind her. "Let him go. Give him time."

The voice was that off Gennai. He'd suddenly popped up again.

"But…. but…." she stuttered. Gennai just shook his head.

"TK's feeling a lot of mix emotions right now, he has to work out how he truly feels about things. In order to do this he needs to some time to think. Let him go for a walk and blow off some steam and you'll see him again later, I promise."

Tears continued to fall down Nancy's cheeks but she eventually nodded in response. She turned back around to watch her son as he continued to walk off down the road. She felt an arm drop around her shoulders, the arm of Hiroaki.

"He'll be okay Nancy," he whispered into her ear. "Gennai's right, just let him have a think."

She sobbed and said;

"He's our son Hiroaki. Our lovely little baby boy. He may be bigger but he's still my baby and I'll always love him. I just want him to realise that."

"He will," Hiroaki told her. "I promise you he'll come around. And so will Matt. I also promise we'll get him back too. We just need to be patient."

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter and feel it was worth the wait. Next chapter either tomorrow or the day after at the latest, I promise! Please rate, review, favourite and follow. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. Until the next chapter, see ya!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the last chapter which got us back into things, time to kick on like I promised. This chapter we'll catch up with the other kids so let's go.**

**Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes.**

**Chapter 27**

The digi-destined children remained inside the café as TK and his mom and dad stepped outside to talk. Every one of them had got the shock of their lives to see TK, this new and older TK, come down the stairs. They all couldn't believe he'd changed, he was so different to the adorable little boy they all knew so well.

"I can't believe how much taller he was," stated Sora.

"And how handsome," Mimi gushed.

"Hey cut it out Mimi," Tai told her. He then continued on; "Yeah guys he really has changed a lot. I saw him not long ago, me, Kari and Augmon met him in the digital world, remember I told you?"

They all nodded.

"I know you said he'd changed but jeez, he changed more than I ever could have imagined," said Joe. "He's almost as tall as I am."

"I couldn't believe how similar he actually looks to Matt," remarked Sora now. The bearer of Love had always had a crush on Matt and she couldn't help but admire Takeru too seeing as he was so alike Matt now. The two had always looked similar, it was easy to tell they were brothers. Both had their mother's blonde her and crystal blue eyes, as well as their father's pointed nose and strong chin. But before these features were only really prominent on the older, teenage Matt. Before when TK was just a little boy had chubby cheeks was and little hands and feet. Now though he was much taller and his body had developed due to puberty. He and Matt could easily be mistaken for twins. It would hard to judge who girls at school would like more.

"I don't think his Mr and Mrs Isida could quite believe either," said Kari now chipping into to the discussion.

"They aren't Mr and Mrs, Matt and TK's mom and dad are divorced," Tai informed his little sister.

"Oh."

"I know TK lived with their mom and Matt with their dad."

"Yeah, but neither one of them looked quite prepared for that," said Joe now. "Try and imagine how they feel. Their 8 year-old soon just disappears one day and then about a week and a half later he comes back on his he's now twice as old as he used to be!"

"Yeah, that's pretty crazy to comprehend now that you say it," Tai agreed.

"Are you sure he's going to help us," asked Kari now. "He said he wouldn't when we saw him in the digital world with Agumon. He seemed pretty sure then to me."

"I thnk that was all just heat of the moment stuff," Tai told his little sister. "TK said a lot of stuff about us, Matt, his parents and Gennai, all because he was angry. I don't think he truly meant any of it deep down."

"I sure hope he didn't mean any of it," said Joe now. "Because without him we'd stand no chance of stopping Myotismon. He's the only digi-destined who still has his crest."

"Yeah, the crest of Hope. It's a good thing Patamon held onto it all those years," said Tai.

"Wait, didn't Patamon give that crest to someone the other night at the restaurant?" asked Izzy.

"Oh yeah, that's right he did," remembered Sora.

"Who did he give it too?" asked Kari.

"He gave it too….. Matt….." stuttered Joe.

"He gave it to Matt? But Matt's been captured by Myotismon."

"I know, so that must mean….."

"That Myotismon has it?" said Mimi piecing it all together. "Oh no…."

"Myotismon does not have the crest of Hope," said the voice of Gennai now. The kids all looked around and saw the old man standing by the café door. They had all gotten so used to him just popping up out of thin air by now that none of them became alarmed when he suddenly spoke anymore. He continued on.

"Patamon did indeed give TK's crest to Matt but fortunately Matt never took it out with him when he left home this morning. It's still at his apartment now and I've sent Patamon to go and retrieve it."

"Oh well that's a relief," said Tai as all the kids let out a breath.

"Where's TK then?" asked Sora now.

"He's gone for a walk, he'll be back later."

"Gone for a walk? How come, shouldn't we be planning on our next move?" asked Joe.

"Yes we will do that," said Gennai nodding. "But for now TK has gone to clear his head. He's just had a heart to heart talk with his parents, he needs to get himself together before he and Patamon fight Myotismon so he's just gone to blow off some steam for now. He and Patamon will be back with the crest later. For now, let us plan."

And with that the Digi-guardian and the digi-destined sat down and began to talk about the upcoming events of the next few days. They would decide the fate of two worlds.

**Elsewhere…..**

TK had stopped walking and was now sitting on a grass knoll under a rail way line. It was quite a secluded spot and apart from the odd train passing over ahead it was reasonably quiet. Exactly what he wanted in order to think. His head was racing with thoughts again, about his family, the other kids and Myotismon.

"They both looked so shocked to see me, what must have they have been thinking?" he wondered about his mom and dad. "Are they upset, disappointed with what I am now? Would they prefer it if I were just a little kid again? What about the others? What do they think of me? Do they trust me? Do they think I'll be able to beat Myotismon?"

He wished he knew the answers to these questions to put himself out of this turmoil. A train passed overhead and he lay back on the grass to look up at the tracks.

Patamon had gone to get his crest from his dad's and Matt's apartment where Matt had left it. It annoyed him slightly that Matt had had his crest, why did Patamon give it to him in the first place? He knew it was hypocritical to think that way because for years TK didn't want the crest himself but he still didn't like the idea of Matt having it either. Matt shouldn't be touching anything that was still really his.

TK was still felt bitterness towards Matt. If his reunion with his parents had been tense then his eventual confrontation with his brother would be one hell of a must see. He didn't know what he was going to do when he and Matt inevitably saw each other, would hit him? It was a very appealing option.

He sighed and sat back up again. Now he began to think more about some others. To be precise, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. He hadn't either one of them since he'd been arrested and that was 3 days ago now. Those poor guys had come with him to the human world and been left on their own in a matter of hours. They had no idea how to take care of themselves here, they'd never left the digital world before. TK prayed they were okay and that he'd get to see them again soon. What had become of them? Where were they now and what had they been doing? Those guys were tough and would probably be okay, even if they'd maybe gotten themselves into a little trouble.

TK decided that the next time he saw Gennai he'd tell him to find Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon, he'd surely know where they are or be able to find them. For now his thoughts went back to his parents. It had been so strange for him to see the both of them together like that? That was all he'd wanted as a little boy, for his mom and dad to get back together. He'd naively thought that there was a genuine chance of it happening but now he was older he realised the true picture, just like Matt must have done.

Seeing them both together and seemingly fine in each other's presence like that had been strange for him to see, the last time that had been the case was before they had divorced. He couldn't remember them even ever talking together, at least in front of him, after they'd divorced and he'd gone to live with his mom. Had they been talking whilst he'd been away? Had they made up (to an extent). Where did Matt stand with all this?

Gennai had told him about Myotismon capturing Matt and to be honest, TK had mixed feelings about it. Part him wanted to charge right up to Myotismon's lair, kick the door down and kick the evil digimon's butt for everything he'd done. The other part was more like "where was Matt when I needed him?"

He sighed again and stood up. He'd been sitting there for so long that it was now dusk and the sky had noticeably darkened and the temperature had dropped slightly. He'd decided what he was going to do. He was going to help beat Myotismon, get the crests back and rescue Matt. But he wasn't doing it for Matt, the other kids or anyone else. He was doing purely because he hated Myotismon and wanted to stop him however he could.

A sudden thought occurred to him. Where was he to going to go? He couldn't go back to the café now, no one would be there and it would be closed. Where should he head too instead? Only two options came into his head and with neither was he very comfortable with. Go to either his mom's or dad's. Those were his two options. His mom lived an hour away on the train and he had no money and it would take hours to walk there. He was left with one choice.

"I guess I got to go to my dad's," TK told himself resignedly. He began walking down the road and passed the train yard. The apartment building he was heading to was only about 20 minutes walk away from here so it wouldn't take him long.

Sure enough, before he knew it TK found himself in the apartment complex elevator heading up. He pressed to button and the elevator doors closed. He remembered what floor his father lived on and he waited as the elevator took him there. He was nervous because he wasn't sure what to say once he got there. His father would surely let him in and stay but TK still didn't feel comfortable, hence why he'd changed his mind about coming here a few days earlier. The doors opened and he stepped out onto the balcony. He headed down the hall and finally reached the right apartment, no 57. Taking a sharp intake of breath he lightly knocked on the door. Even though his knock had been so quiet and half-hearted he immediately began to hear movement inside. He heard the locks being undone and the door then open. It was his father (as expected who greeted him).

"TK….." he said as he saw who it was knocking.

"Yeah," said the blonde nodding. Hiroaki stood there open mouthed for a few seconds before regaining himself.

"Come in, come in," he ushered stepping back. TK did as he was told and stepped inside the apartment that had been the first home he'd ever had. The place where the family, when they'd been together and happy, had resided. He shocked to the the sight of his mother sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. What was she doing here, shouldn't she have gone back to her apartment on the other side of town?

"TK," she gasped standing up and rushing over. She was overjoyed that he'd come.

**Let's end this chapter there shall we. Hopefully you enjoyed that one, time for TK to have some more serious thought. He's getting there though and so is this story. Next chapter maybe on Sunday now. Please keep reviewing, favouriting and following, I love you for it. Until next time, take it easy.**


	28. Chapter 28

**Hi guys. Been a while since the last update, just been busy with other stuff sorry. I'm ready now though so let's get back to this story. We left it at a very emotional end in the last chapter with Takeru finally returning home. Matt is still Myotismon's prisoner though and there is still a battle to fight. Here we go.**

**Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes and also please enjoy.**

**Chapter 28**

Takeru sat at the kitchen table awkwardly with his mother and father not saying much as they both looked at him in awe, still daring to believe their eyes that it was really him. Both were trying to find something to say and TK was merely waiting for them to say it. Patamon just sat off to the side of the room patiently, allowing the family to have their reunion. It was eerily similar to the meeting that had occurred a few days earlier, just with Matt and Gabumon.

"Are you hungry TK?" his mother asked him nervously after a while. He turned to look at her and it shocked Nancy just how penetrating those blues eyes of his were. The eyes he'd enherited from her. She used to them being wide, bright and joyful. The eyes a happy little boy would have. But now they were different. Although still blue and bright they weren't filled with boyish joy anymore. Instead they looked serious and piercing. The exact same as her other son, Matt's were. It was that moment when the full realization hit her. TK wasn't little anymore. Like Matt, he'd grown up without her.

"No, not really," he answered eventually. He was lying though. He was in fact very hungry after eating nothing all afternoon but he didn't want her to make him any food. He didn't want this to feel like happy families.

"TK, you haven't eaten all day," his father said now (he wasn't fooled by TK's half-hearted answer). "You should have something. You haven't had your mother's cooking in so long."

"I'm fine, I don't want or need anything," TK answered him shortly, still not willing to lower his guard. Patamon continued to watch and listen from the sidelines feeling very sad. He wanted TK and is parents to reunite and be happy like they all wanted to do, just TK was being stubborn. His friend had to do this when he felt ready though.

Both Nancy and Hiroaki quickly glanced each other. Neither really knew what to say or do. This was hard for them too, TK was nothing like either of them expected or knew, he wasn't that little boy. What made more difficult was the fact that obviously wasn't in the most sociable of moods.

"What made you come back?" Hiroaki eventually decided to ask his son. It was a good question because it caught TK off guard. He had to think for some time before answering.

"I guess because I had too," TK eventually answered him. "I had to come back at some point. There's a battle to be fought and I can't win alone. Otherwise I'd have gone and done it already."

That wasn't the answer his parents were hoping to hear. Both wanted him to say something along the lines of; "because I loved you and missed you. You're my family." TK had changed though and they were clearly going to have to get used to it.

"TK, please…." Said Nancy now finally losing her compusre and letting her emotions get the best of her. Forget all the awkward small talk they were trying to make to break the ice, she instead decided to jump into the questions she wanted answers to the most.

"Please. Tell us, where have you been TK? What happened to you? How come you're so much older? What happened with Matt and all the other kids?"

TK took a deep breath and leaned back on his chair.

"Time to get into the heavy stuff," he thought to himself. This was going to be very painful and uncomfortable conversation for him, but one he always knew was going to happen one day. Now it was time to tell them. Tell them everything.

"Okay," he said with a sigh. "Let's just get into it. I'll you guys everything you want to know because I guess you have the right to know."

Nancy and Hiroaki both came to sit down at the table with him. Both were going to get the answers they both so desperately wanted.

"Okay, here it is. When I went to summer camp with Matt me, him and all the other kids were sucked into the digital-world for the first time. We met our digimon and Gennai who you both know. We spent weeks in the digital world's time fighting all sort of evil digimon. We had many hard battles and close scrapes but we pulled through. Eventually we fought a digimon named Etemon. When we destroyed him it opened up a portal that Tai Kamiya was sucked into. I now know that portal brought him back here to this world.

After Tai left us the group slowly split up and eventually only me, Patamon, Matt and Gabumon were left. One day we came to a stop in the digital world and Matt told me to wait whilst he went for a look-around. He and Gabumon said they'd come back for us in a couple of hours and they set off leaving me and Patamon alone. And I haven't seen either one of them since and I have no wish to anymore either."

Both his mom and dad were quite shocked at that. He didn't want to see Matt ever again, did he really mean that? TK carried on though before either of them could jump in to ask.

"Eventually when it became clear to me that Matt had abandoned me (he made clear emphasis on the word abandoned) I realised I had to move on and look after myself. Me and Patamon had a falling out which I won't go into but we also ended up going our separate ways. I was all alone in the digital world after that and had no one with me. I was very scared and upset. Thankfully though, I met two of the best digimon I could ever call my friends. They're called Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon. They took under their wing and for seven years, seven whole years in the digital world's time, I lived with them and grew into who you see now. I came back to this world because of Gennai I suppose; he must have forcefully brought me back because when he first asked me I didn't want to come back. I wanted to stay in the digital world forever but I'd gotten used to the life I had there. But I had to come back to help stop Myotismon's evil plans. And here I am now. Back here with the both of you."

**Elsewhere….**

Matt was still bound, blindfolded and in captivity. He'd been trapped her for what must have been at leat 24 hours now and he was now looked a bit of a pathetic sight. Tired, cold and hungry, the blonde desperately wanted to escape and get back to his family and Gabumon. Nobody had been to speak to him since Demi-Devimon had left and he was now struggling to hold it together. Part of just wanted to burst out in tears but his pride wouldn't let him. For long so he'd played the cool tough kid act in front of others, constantly wearing a mask his true self and never letting it slip. Right now he felt completely helpless.

After he appeared to drift off into a weary sleep he was suddenly bolted back into consciousness when he heard the door nearby being opened. Somebody was finally coming back in and he hoped they were bring food and water. He was disappointed. He heard several muffled voices and was then pulled roughly pulled to his feet.

"Get up worm, let's go," said an oily voice he recognised as that of a Bakemon. He was pushed and lead (still blindfolded) forward out of the door. He continued to walk (half being pushed and dragged) down a long corridor with the Bakemon around him still all talking to each other.

"Come on, Myotismon said we need to hurry up."

"I know, what he said!"

"Well do it then!"

Eventually he came to a halt and he heard a door in front of him being opened.

"Where are you creeps taking me?" Matt demanded now of his captors.

"Shut up," was the only response got. The door opened and he was pushed forwards very roughly.

"Get in there," said a Bakemon. They had brought him to what was obviously another makeshift cell to hold him in. The door quickly closed after him. Matt sighed and began waving his head to try and dislodge his blindfold. He had some success as he managed to lower the blindfold enough so that he could just about see out of his right eye. He made out the forms of two other digimon lying in the corner of what was a very dark room.

"Hey, hey who are you guys?" he asked tentatively. There was a groan in response from the floor. "Hey, are you okay?" Matt asked.

"Who are you?" said a voice weakly in response.

"I asked you first."

"Are you here to hurt us?"

"What!? No, I'm not. What's going on here?"

"Who are you?" the voices said again.

"I'm Matt," he told them. "I'm not here to hurt you guys, I've just been thrown in here. Who are you guys and why are you in here?"

"I'm Pumpkinmon. And he's Gotsumon. We were captured by Myotismon."

"Pumpkinmon and Gotsumon? Wait, where I have heard of you two before?"

Matt began to think hard. He'd definitely heard those names before, for some reason they made him think TK.

"Waits, that's it," he exclaimed. "You two are the digimon who know TK!"

"How do you know Trowa?"

"Trowa? Who's that? I said TK, you guys know TK! My brother!"

"You're Tro…. I mean TK's brother?"

"Yes!"

"What are you doing here?"

"Myotismon's goons ambushed me and brought me here."

"Really. Damn, that's the same thing that happened to us. We got separated from TK and not long after we got ambushed by huge amount of Bakemon. We've been here for days."

"How did you get separated from TK?" Matt wondered.

"When we came here from the digital world TK went and got himself over-excited at being back. Got himself arrested."

"Arrested!? TK got arrested? Why?"

"Er….." Gotsumon said stumbling. He realised that he had perhaps said too much about his friend's misdeamours.

"Never mind, we'll tell you later. For now kid, how are we going to get out of here?"

"I don't know," Matt said now. "We have to find a way out though. Myotismon is going to do something with us, something bad unless we get out of here."

"You're right kid, we're not going to last much longer in here. We need to get out and find out buddy."

"Yes, definitely," said Matt nodding now. "Let's get out of here and find TK!"

**Thanks for reading guys, hope it was the worth the wait. Next chapter will be as soon as I can get round to writing it. Please favourite, follow and review. It's very much appreciated and keeps me motivated. Thank you. **


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29.**

**Hi guys, time for another chapter. Been busy with other stories and found it hard to juggle them. Back now though so let's crack on with it. The last chapter TK made his feeling clear to his parents and Matt devised a plan with Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon to try and escape Myotismon's clutches.**

**We'll pick it back up now.**

**Kamiya apartment**

The digi-destined (including TK) and all of the digimon had gone over to Tai and Kari's apartment to meet with one another again to discuss how they would go about trying to rescue Matt. TK and Patamon had gone along too though, they wanted to be in on the loop. TK wasn't particularly in the mood to catch up with the other kids though, he was still angry with them too. He'd only come because Patamon had convinced him that he needed to be in the loop for any planned attack on Myotismon.

The meeting was here because Tai and Kari's mom and dad weren't home so they were was enough space for everyone. Everyone sat in the living room either on the couch or on the floor and all were looking TK's way (he the only one standing up, leaning against the kitchen counter).

"What are you all looking at!?" he snapped eventually.

All the kids jumped in shock at his outburst.

"Nothing TK," Sora answered him. "You just look….. different."

"Oh you think?" he replied sarcastically. "Spending 7 years alone does change you a bit."

"There's no need for the nastiness," Tai told him now firmly.

"Yeah come on TK, calm down," Patamon urged his partner.

TK should rolled his head. He wasn't going to play best friends with these guys now he was back in the fold, same way he wouldn't play happy families with his mom and dad. He wasn't going to allow them to think everything he's been through was just water under the bridge. He wasn't here to be a digi-destined, he was here purely because he wanted to fight Myotismon and couldn't do it alone. He looked around and eventually locked his eyes on Gabumon. He felt white hot rage bubbling away inside him. He so badly wanted to roar the building down in anger at his brother's partner but he managed to keep his composure, for now.

"Now then," Tai went on. "We're because we need to decide how we're going to rescue Matt."

"Well, first off we need to figure out where Myotismon is holding him," added Izzy.

"Yeah, that could be anywhere in the city," said Mimi.

"You're right, it would take forever to look," said Joe sadly.

"Who cares?" TK asked.

Again, all heads turned towards him. Sora lost her temper with him.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WHO CARES!?" she shouted, her eyes beginning to water. "WE CARE. YOU SHOULD CARE. HE'S YOUR BROTHER, HE'S OUR FRIEND."

TK was shocked by her reaction. He hadn't expected hysterics like that. Unbeknownst to all of them, Sora had always had a bit of crush on Matt and cared for him deeply.

"You can all care for him as much as like," TK retorted hotly. "I don't care about him whatsoever, just like he didn't care about me. Look for him until your blue in the face but it's a waste of time, we should be devising a game plan to fight to Myotismon."

"No, we rescue our friends first," said Tai.

"Hear, hear," chipped in Mimi.

TK just tutted.

"What's happened to you, you're not the TK we all remember?" Sora asked him now, tears falling down her face. She'd always loved TK like her own little brother, she'd always felt a responsibility to be the girl who looked out for him. She didn't like this strange boy who was talking to them now.

"No, I'm not the precious little TK you all remember," he shot back. "I'm big enough to care for myself. I'm older than all of you are now and I don't need to be treated like a baby. Matt got himself captured, he can rescue himself. I'm doing nothing for him."

"But he's your brother," said Biyomon.

"No he's not," TK answered shaking his head. "If he were he wouldn't have abandoned me the way he did. I'll never forgive him for it and I certainly won't be riding to his rescue."

"Maybe not him, but perhaps you'll want to rescue someone else," said that voice that just popped up in random places again.

"GENNAI!" everybody said in unison looking around. The digi-guardian was spotted standing by the front door.

"How does he do that exactly!?" asked Tentomon.

"TK," said Gennai walk forwards to the centre of the room. "Myotismon just doesn't have your brother as his prisoner. He has someone else too. Well, two people actually."

"Who!?" he demanded to know.

"Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon," Gennai revealed to him. "They two are Myotismon's prisoners. They were captured shortly after you were separated from them."

"How long have you known about this?" he asked now, the anger reaching his voice again now.

"For a few days," Gennai admitted.

"A FEW DAYS! YOU'VE KNOWN ABOUT THIS FOR DAYS AND DIDN'T TELL ME!"

"You had other things to contend with TK, like re-connecting with your parents and friends here,"

"Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon are my friends, two of my best friends. I've been worried sick about them."

"We've been trying to locate Myotismon's hideout for a while now but so far we haven't been able to pin point it," Gennai told them all now. "We know that's where Myotismon is and also he's holding Matt, Gotsumon, Pumpkinmon and perhaps more."

"Damn it," said TK slamming his fist down on the counter. "If anything happens to them I'll never forgive myself."

"Why do you care so much about those two anyway and not Matt?" demanded Gabumon now who was angry after hearing about how TK spoke about his brother.

"Because those two were the ones who were there for me in the digital world when no one else was," TK answered now. "They cared for me and raised me, I owe them so much."

He turned to face Gennai.

"I've got to find and help them. I love those guys, they're like my brothers too."

"Well you won't be able to do it alone," Gennai told him. "You'll need the help of everyone else here."

TK turned back to look at everyone else, a look of slight guilt now etched on his face.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly in a softer tone. "You guys are right, we need to work together and think of a plan. Myotismon has people we hold dear as his prisoners, we have rescue them and cool heads are needed."

TK's apology warmed all of their hearts and helped get rid of the tension. Joe answered him.

"That's very mature of you TK," he smiled.

TK gave him a slight smile in response. He'd always liked Joe, the bearer of knowledge had done a great deal for him back when he was just a kid. If anyone didn't deserve to be hated, it was him.

"Right, now that everyone's calmed down we need to get our thinking hats on," remarked Izzy.

"Well said Izzy," said Tentomon.

"He's right everyone, let's decide what it is we're going to do," said Agumon.

**A little later**

After an hour or so of discussion the group decided to take a break and relax. Gennai had left to go back to wherever it was he went, Tai had gone to the bathroom, Izzy was on his computer with Tentomon, Joe was checking his provisions with Gomamon, Kari was talking with Gatomon, Mimi had used the phone to call her parents and Agumon, Gabumon, Biymon, Palmon and Patamon were all off in the corner talking.

TK was stood on the balcony getting some fresh air and enjoying the view. He store out into the sea which could be seen from this apartment block. It reminded him of the cabin where he, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon had lived in the digital world. Everyday they'd go out fishing on the river. He loved stare out at the deep blue water. It was so relaxing.

He jumped as he heard the balcony door opening and turned around to see someone else joining him. It was Sora.

"Can I talk to please TK?" she asked cautiously.

"Sure," he replied blankly turning back to look out at the water.

She closed the door behind her and came to stand beside him.

"What are you looking at?" she enquired.

"Nothing really," he answered. "Just the water I guess. It's calming."

She just nodded, wondering how best to handle this.

"TK, I want to ask you some questions," she said.

"What kind of questions?"

"Questions about you."

"What about me?"

"I want you tell me everything that's happened with you. Everything that happened in the digital world whilst we were gone and you were there alone. What happened? What's made you change?"

"Lots of things," he merely replied. "Lots of things happened that have made me the way I am. And I'm not ashamed of it."

"Okay, I'll make it easy for you then," Sora countered. "Why are you so angry with us? Why do you hate Matt, your brother, so much now?"

"Because he left me, abandoned me. You all did."

"That's NOT true TK," she told him shaking her head. "That's not what happened at all."

"Oh really?" he asked with heavy sarcasm.

"Yes really," she said firmly. "Matt didn't abandon you and neither did any of the rest of us."

"Alright then fine, I'll tell you exactly what happened," he shot back. "Here it is. After Tai and Agumon got separated after the battle with Etemon, things went horribly wrong. The group of us slowly broke up, you and Biyomon were the first ones to leave if I remember right. Everyone slowly went off their own way, not caring about anyone else's feeling. Eventually it was just me, Matt, Gabumon and Patamon. Then, one day, we came to a sort of amusement park somewhere in the digi-world. Matt told me and Patamon to wait at the park, whilst he and Gabumon went for a look around. They told us they'd be back in just a couple of hours. They never did, they left us and never came back. I've not seen Matt ever since and when I saw Gabumon in there just now it turned my stomach."

Sora listened as he explained his story. She could feel not only the anger in his voice, but also the sorrow. This was a person who really had felt betrayed. TK continued on.

"That's why I want nothing to do with them, just like they wanted nothing to do with me. When we rescue Matt I will not play best brother's with him, he can kiss my ass."

Sora nodded as he finished and sighed. She thought hard about how best to reply to all that because the topic was clearly a very sensitive issue.

"TK, have ever thought about asking Matt why he never came back for you?" she suggested.

"What?"

"You heard me, why don't you ask him and find out what his reasons were for not coming back, it may not have been his fault."

"Don't make excuses for him," TK told her.

"I'm not," she argued back. "How do you know that he was planning on coming back to you and something stopped him? In fact, you don't even have to wait to ask him, why don't you ask Gabumon who will have been with him?"

TK pondered this, he looked over to the patio window and looked at Gabumon was inside. Should he ask him? Or was Sora just making excuses for him? He turned back to her.

"You like Matt don't you?" he asked.

"What?" she said now blushing. "Of course I like Matt, I like everyone. I like you, well the old you."

TK didn't take that comment personally. He carried on.

"No, but you like Matt more than that don't you? I'm not stupid Sora. I always noticed it when I was little, the way you were around him. I just didn't realise what it meant but now I do. The way you were always kind and motherly to me, it was to impress him wasn't it?"

Sora was now blushing heavily.

"No, I was nice to you because I liked you TK, I wanted to be a like a big sister to you. A big sister to everyone."

"Okay then," he said deciding to let it drop (he knew he was right though).

"What about what I said," she reminded him now. "You should talk to Gabumon, find out what really happened and get all this off your chest.

"Fine I will, later," he replied begrudgingly.

At the moment the patio door opened and Tai appeared.

"What are you guys doing out here?" he asked.

"Just catching up," Sora replied.

"Oh yeah, that sound's cool. You both need to come back in here though, we still have planning to do," he told them.

"Fine," said TK. He walked re-entered the apartment, Sora following him.

**Hope you enjoyed, again some more heart-to-heart with TK, this time with another character who he was previously close too. Hope you're still interested in this fic, there's still a fair bit of exciting stuff to come yet it I can just get around to writing. I'll try my best not to leave it too long before updating again. Until next time, take care.**


	30. Chapter 30

**Hi guys. Sorry it's been a while since I last updated, I know I'm terrible. I promise to be more consistent but I rarely keep up my promise. I've been busy the last few weeks and just haven't had time, like always my sabbatical left about 3 or 4 stories hanging. Thanks for some lovely reviews and comments that this story has gotten recently, it really makes a difference in helping to motivate a writer to keep going.**

**Time for another chapter now, hopefully it was worth the wait. The pace has been a bit slow for the last while so now I'm going to pick it up and kick into gear. I've thought of a great ending for this story but I have to get there first before I can write it and we have a fair way to go yet. Here we go.**

**Chapter 30**

The door of Myotismon's makeshift dungeon opened and inside stepped the evil digimon lord himself, as terrifying as ever. His prisoners; Matt, Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were all laying around at separate spaces on the floor, not wanting to give away that they'd been conversing. Myotismon cast his eyes over them and put on his usual look of disgust, as if he was looking at something truly disgusting.

"Take the digimon away, leave the boy," he commanded to several servants stood behind him.

"Wait, what the….." said Matt. Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon were as surprised as him at being taken out of the dungeon. Where were they going and why was Matt being left here? This threw their plans of escape into disarray. The digimon were quickly ushered out of the room and several other Bakemon came into the room now. They were carrying something in, it looked like a….. a wooden giant X shaped plank of wood.

"What's going on!?" Matt demanded sitting up of the floor. "Where are they being taken? What the hell is thing (he nodded at the cross that had been stood upright. Myotismon spoke but he didn't answer any of the questions.

"Stand him up and place on the rack," he commanded of the Bakemon.

"Wait…. NO!" Matt roared jumping up and trying to resist. But it was no good, the Bakemon yet again over powered him and dragged his body over to cross. The placed on top of it and tied him down by his hands and feet. He tried with all his might to fight and resist but it was no good, there were too many of them. He bound to the cross and was now reminiscent of a person who was going to be crucified. He legs spread apart and his arms up over his head, completely helpless.

"Good….." Myotismon mused when the Bakemon finished tying him down. "Now get out, all of you."

"Yes master," the Bakemon all muttered as they all exited through the door, closing it behind them. Yet again Matt was left all alone with Myotismon, completely to the evil digimon's mercy.

"What's going on!?" Matt demanded again.

Myotismon laughed.

"I've been thinking about what to do with you," he said lightly. "It's been 3 days since I captured you but none of what I hoping for has transpired. Your brother clearly isn't coming to rescue you. The other digi-destined and their digimon are powerless to help you and Gennai nor any of his little spys have been able to find you. Your no longer of any use to me."

"So what are you going to do with me?" asked Matt. "Kill me?"

"Perhaps in time," Myotismon responded. "But for now though, I'm going to use you. Use you to amuse myself." He said that last sentence very darkly indeed.

"What does that mean?" Matt asked frowning.

"My actions will speak louder than any words," Myotismon answered mysteriously. He pulled a knife out of his cape and held it up. Matt began to sweat profusely.

"I'm to make you squeal and cry like the child you are," the vampire smiled. "I'm going to do whatever I want to you and before long you'll be begging me to end your wretched life."

Matt tried to not show his fear but he was fighting a losing battle. His eyes were wide as he store at the knife in Myotismon's hands and he began to tremble. But still he managed to show some defiance.

"You… you… you don't scare me!"

"Oh no? Well let's put that to the test."

He turned towards the door and yelled;

"TWO OF YOU, GET IN HERE NOW!"

The door opened and two nervous Bakemon entered.

"What is it master?"

"Remove his clothes," barked Myotismon.

"NO! DON'T!" screamed Matt trying to struggle.

"You will fear me you digi-destined fool," Myotismon uttered sounding very scary indeed.

**BANG**

The explosion rocked the entire building or structure they were in.

"WHAT WAS THAT!?" Myotismon demanded frantically. He was only feet away from a now shirtless Matt.

"I don't know master," one of the Bakemon answered.

"The both of you, follow me," he commanded. He turned to Matt and said, "don't go anywhere kid, I'll be right back."

Matt merely closed his eyes and inwardly blew a huge sigh of relief.

…

**Outside the cell**

"What's going on?" Myotismon demanded of his servants after stepping outside.

"Something's attacking the fortress master, it must be other digimon."

"GET OUT THERE AND DEAL WITH THEM!"

"Yes sir."

"It's them," Myotismon thought to himself now. "They must have come to try and rescue him after all."

….

**Outside **

Myotismon's lair was in fact an old factory building located on the Odaiba docks. The area had been deserted the last few weeks after the worker's had stage an indefinite strike and Myotismon had decided to use it as a base of operation. It was large enough for him and his army of Bakemon to hide and it was away from prying eyes. He had been wrong about one thing though, Gennai had been able to track it down. Thanks to Pixiemon. The little digimon had finally arrived from the digi-world to take part in the fight and had managed to use his physic abilities to track Matt's whereabouts. Matt led to Myotismon. He'd informed Gennai, who's informed everyone else.

"Come on guys, let's go rescue Matt!" shouted Tai as he and the rest of the digi-destineds and digimon broke down the electric gate which lead to factory.

Greymon, Garurumon, Togemon marched forwards firing their attacks at the building causing it shake violently and to fight with the emerging Bakemon. Kabuterimon and Birdramon flew upwards to attack from the air. Ikkakumon had gone into the water to attack from the port side. Gatomon had remained at Kari's side and had also Patamon hung back, at TK's command.

"Don't digi-volve Pat," he told him. "Stay here."

"WHY TK!?" he asked. "Let me go with the others and fight. I'm the only one who can digi-volve past Champion level."

"Wait until Myotismon shows up," TK told him firmly. "For now let the others handle it."

"NOVA BLAST!"

METEOR WING!"

HOWLING BLASTER!

"NEEDLE SPRAY!"

"ELECTRO SHOCKER!"

The champion laid waste to any Bakemon who stood in their way. Many of the ghost digimon tried to battle but where defeated swiftly. Others began to run and scatter in fear, knowing fighting was no good. Phantomon however was soon on the scene.

"You fools!" he yelled swinging his chain. "If you so desire death, I will give it to you. SHADOW SCYTHE!"

Phantomon swung his chain and directed his attack towards the champion digimon. Greymon and Garurumon managed to evade it, Togemon sadly didn't. It hit her squarely in the chest and knocked her off he feet, flying backwards. She dropped back into Palmon and lay motionless on the floor, out of the fight completely.

"PALMON!" cried Mimi running over to check on here digimon.

"Man, he's strong," said Tai.

"He's an ultimate level," explained Izzy. "None of digimon are strong enough to fight him or Myotismon, not without digi-volving another level."

"But we can't, not without our crests," said Sora with her hands over her mouth as she watched the battle unfold.

"Leave him to me kids," said a digimon wizzing past. It was Pixiemon.

"Wait, Pixiemon he's too strong!" shouted Joe.

"He's stronger than he looks," said Gennai now.

The little pink digimon flew to confront the grimp reaper digimon.

"What's this?" mocked Phantomon. "They send a little cuddly toy of a digimon to fight me?"

"How's this for a cuddly toy!?" yelled Pixiemon taking a swing at Phantomon using his staff. The grim reaper barely managed to evade the attack.

"Oh, so you do have some fight in you?" Phantomon said now. "Good, this should be a lot more fun that just bashing around weaker digimon."

From there the two digimon proceeded to duel each other in the air, each blocking one another's attacks as they flew around frantically.

TK watched on from the sidelines, standing apart from everyone else. He and Patamon were still waiting for Myotismon.

"TK please, let me join the fight," Patamon begged.

"Just hang on Patamon," TK urged. "I want you to save your energy, you'll need when you have to fight Myotismon. You're the only one who can take him on and get the others' crests back."

**Meanwhile…..**

Whilst the battle was waging between the digi-destined and Myotismon's army down at the docks, the families of the digi-destined waited in their apartments for news on what was happening. To their dismay, they'd been told by Gennai to wait behind and not accompany their children to the battle. It had been very tough for them all to let their precious boys and girls go to fight, but they knew that this battle had to be fought.

In the Ishida apartment Nancy sat at the couch watching TV as the news covered the events as they unfolded.

"Just a few minutes ago what appears to be giant monsters began attack the fish shipping factory at Odaiba Dock," explained a news anchor (actually one of Hiroaki's co-workers). We have no ideas what these monsters are or where they've come from. This is a red-alert situation people, please stay in your homes and allow the military the deal with this. These monsters are extremely dangerous."

"I can't take it anymore Hiroaki!" exclaimed Nancy jumping off the couch covering her hands with her face. "We can't just sit here whilst our two boys are down there in the middle of all that. We need to get down there and help them!"

"But Nancy," said Hiroaki standing also. "We were told to wait here by Gennai. He said the kids needed to do this alone, without distractions."

"I DON'T CARE!" she shouted starting a cry little bit because of the raw emotion. "They're my babies and I won't sit back and let them get hurt. I've made up my mind, I'm going down there."

She walked away from him and over to the kitchen counter. She picked up her car keys and Hiroaki watched her. Before she turned to make her way towards the door she turned around to look at him and asked;

"What are you doing? Are you staying here or are you going to help your sons?"

Hiroaki looked at her, then to the TV and then back at his ex-wife. He sighed and brought his hands up to his face to rub his eyes. Nancy watched him intensely, waiting on his answer. Eventually he lowered his hands, turned to her and said;

"Alright, let's go."

**Thanks for reading guys, it's always hard work writing a chapter after having a break from writing for a while. I hope you enjoyed and it was worth the wait. I plan on having the next chapter up later in the week but as I'm sure you've deduced, a promise from me means little because I very rarely am able to keep it. I will try though I swear.**

**Please review, favourite and follow. I cannot stress how much I appreciate it. Even a few suggestions on what you'd like to see next wouldn't go amiss. Thanks again and hopefully I have a new chapter for you to read soon.**


	31. Chapter 31

**Hi guys, I promised I'd have another chapter before the end of the week and hear it is. Thanks for the fresh reviews and questions by the way. A couple of things were pointed out in the reviews like the time difference between the digi-world and the regular world (specifically, Tai going to the digital world for a few hours to speak to Trowa earlier). For continuity's sake we'll just let it slide okay?**

**Anyway, let's crack on. The main event for this story is now underway.**

TK and Patamon continued to watch as the carnage erupted around them. Digimon were being flung into walls or sent several dozen feet into the air. The other kids were all running around hysterically shouting their support for the digimon and trying in whatever way they could to help fight the seemingly endless amount of Bakemon. TK wouldn't let Patamon join and help everyone else because they were waiting for vampire digimon himself to show up.

"Where the hell is he!?" TK shouted out load now in frustration after Myotismon still hadn't arrived on the scene yet.

"He must be hanging back, like a true coward," said Patamon with a frown.

"Damn it," TK cursed. "That's it, if he doesn't have the balls to come out here and fight then we'll just take the fight to him!"

"Are you sure TK?" Patamon asked wearily. He didn't like the idea of going after Myotismon themselves, for the sake of his confidence he wanted to battle Myotismon with everyone was around.

"I'm sure Pat," TK replied. "Come on, let's go. The sooner we find him, beat him and get the crests back then this will all be over. I know you're stronger than him once you digi-volve."

TK began to run off in the direction of the building, away from the battle. Everyone else was so caught up in fighting that nobody noticed. He ran around the side of building and began trying to find a door which would lead him inside. He was relieved that he seemingly managed to slip away without being followed, he didn't him and Patamon to have to fight any Bakemon before they found Myotismon, as he said he wanted his digimon to conserve his energy for the big battle. But then he noticed something else, he was alone.

He stopped and looked around frantically trying to see where Patamon was. Hadn't he been just behind him? Well he wasn't here now.

"Damn it Pat!" he thought. "He must have stayed around the front of the building, now I'll have to go all the way back and get him."

"Stay here," said a voice. TK spun round and saw Gennai standing a few feet away. He knew better than to ask how he'd got here. But he did ask something else.

"How did you know what I was thinking?" he demanded.

"You're like an open book Takeru, you're very easy to read."

"Hardy-ha, you're so funny."

"That's not my intention, I want to talk to you about something very serious."

"What? Can't it wait, can't you see we're busy!"

"No Takeru, it has to be now."

"Fine, hurry up."

"We have all the time in the world."

"What do you mean?" asked TK confused.

"Look up at the sky," Gennai replied. TK did so and he looked up at the cloudy sky. It was overcast and looked like it would rain soon.

"What am I meant to be looking at?" TK asked getting irritated now.

"The clouds," answered Gennai. "Do you see them moving?"

"I don't have time for this," TK snapped and with that he turned around and began to run back to the front of the building to collect Patamon. Once he turned the corner the battle site of the battle came back into view. But he could hear nothing. Something didn't feel right now. He soon realised what. Once he got close enough to distinguish the shapes of everyone he realised that nobody was making any noise because nobody was moving. EVERYONE WAS STOOD COMPLETELY STILL. As if they'd all been frozen in time, the digi-destined and all the digimon. He looked to left and saw Patamon in the air, completely frozen in time, his wings in mid-flap. What the hell had happened?"

"Time has frozen," Gennai explained to him now as he came up along side before TK even asked. "I've paused everything so I can talk to you."

"How have you done this?" TK enquired, still in disbelief.

"With great difficultly," Gennai merely replied. "I have to make use of this and tell you something Takeru."

"Tell me what!?" TK demanded to know now.

"Takeru, brace yourself. What I'm going to tell you will shake you to your very core."

Taking the digi-guardians advice for once, TK tuck a deep breathe and tried to compose himself. When he was sure he felt calm he said;

"Alright Gennai, what is it you want to tell me?"

Gennai gave him a grave look and said;

"TK, you're not what you think you are. There's something you don't know."

"What?" TK asked flabbergasted.

"TK, you're….. you're….. not… (sigh). TK you're not human."

TK was stunned by that. It was not what he'd expected.

"Wha…..?"

"TK, you're not human. At least not anymore."

"What…. what…. do you mean?"

"TK, please listen to me as I explain. I should have told you this form the beginning but it was just too hard to say. Let me tell you everything and then you can ask me what you want when I'm finished. Okay?"

TK just nodded instinctively, his mind still completely blown.

"You spent 7 years in the digital world Takeru, that's an awful long time for a human being," Gennai told him. "Although you were oblivious to it, you began to change slowly over time. You've become digital, just like everything else in the digital world.

TK tried to take all of this in and digest it. He couldn't believe what he was being told.

"So…. you're saying that I'm…. I'm a…. I'm a digimon now!?"

"I guess in some ways yes," Gennai nodded. "You can't digivolve or anything of the sort but you are comprised of data, like the digimon."

"Well…. what does this mean?" TK asked now, actually scared of the possible answer he'd get.

"I'll tell you," Gennai said now. "Once this battle is ov4er and hopefully if we win and succeed in defeating Myotismon, the digi-gate will open again and take all digimon back to the digital world. That includes you Takeru. You will have to return with us, you cannot stay on Earth."

Takeru swallowed hard. He was trying to think of something to say, but he couldn't find the words.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you this earlier my boy, I was hoping myself for a long time that it wouldn't be the case. That you wouldn't become like me."

"Like you?" TK asked finding his voice again. "You mean, you're a human too. A human who got trapped in the digital world and became digital?"

"Yes," said Gennai nodding. "We share the same curse, the only difference is that I became digital centuries ago. I was the first ever digi-destined. After becoming trapped in the digital world and discovering that I could never return to Earth I decided to devote my life in the digital world to fighting against the forces of evil and helping to prevent the same fate from happening to any other future digi-destineds. But evidently I've failed with you Takeru. I'm truly sorry."

"So you're saying that…. I can't stay here? I have to go back to the digital world and live there forever?" TK's head was bowed and he was shaking."

"Yes," said Gennai very sadly lowering his own head. The digi-guardian had never felt so small.

"At one point," Takeru began to say. "At one point that's exactly what I'd have wanted. To stay in the digital world forever with Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon and never come back. But things have changed since then. Before I was arrogant and selfish. Maybe I still am. But I didn't want to know my parents or any of the other kids because I was so upset. Now that I've been back here for a few days I realised what I've missed out on. Having friends, real friends who are like me who I can be close too. Having parents who worry sick about me. Having people who want to know about me. I NEED that."

"I'm sorry Takeru," was all Gennai could say. TK marched towards him and grabbed the digi-guardian by the collar and actually lifted him up off the ground, very roughly.

"Prove that I'm digital, how do I know you're not lying to me again."

"Takeru…"

"Prove it!"

"Try cutting yourself."

TK set him down and picked up a sharp stone off the floor. He scraped the pointy end along the palm of his hand to deliberately hurt himself and draw some blood. He got a very rude shock.

His hand didn't bleed, nor did his skin scrape. Merely a little bit of shapeless material fell away, almost like dust. It must have been digi-data that evaporated whenever a digimon was killed. Gennai was not lying.

"Change me back," TK now began to beg Gennai. "Please, change me back to be like everyone else. I don't want to be made up of data."

"I can't Takeru, if I knew a way then I'd have done so to myself a long time ago and come back here permanently myself. There is no known way to change back, myself and Pixiemon have searched for answer for a long time and were no closer to finding a way.

There was no cure. TK was stuck this way forever. Soon enough he'd have to go back to the digital world and live there forever, never able to go back. He felt just like he had all those years ago as a little boy who'd been left alone in the digital world. Helpless and scared with no way to picture the future positively.

Finally managing to compose himself, TK looked up and look Gennai square in the eyes.

"So, what happens now?" he asked.

"We must defeat Myotismon and thwart his plans for world domination. You can still save this world TK even if you can't live here. Once Myotismon is beaten, you will have to come back with us."

TK nodded.

"Do the others know?" he asked. "About me? About you?"

"Heavens no."

"Good, don't tell them. I don't want them getting upset. I'll have to explain to them, before I go."

"Very well."

"But, what about…. my Mom and Dad? They're not here."

Gennai sighed.

"I'm afraid you likely won't have time to go to them once the battle is over Takeru."

TK just nodded feeling very resigned.

"Well if I can't say my goodbyes then there's no point me hanging around. Let's just get this over with."

Gennai nodded.

"Good luck Takeru, I'm very proud of you regardless of what happens."

With that he snapped his fingers and time unfroze. The smell of the air returned, the sounds of the battle could be heard and TK could see people moving in normal time as they should. Gennai, in the blink of an eye, was gone.

"TK!" shouted Patamon rushing over. "You said we're going to find Myotismon. Didn't you?"

TK didn't answer him immediately, or even turn around to face. He was brooding, deep in thought.

"TK?" asked Patamon confused. "TK, TK what's the matter?"

"Nothing," he answered quietly without turning around. "Come on Pat, let's go kick that vampires butt and end this."

**Another chapter down. I hope you were shocked and enjoyed my little twist haha. Yes, TK is digital now, not human. You could say he's technically a digimon but is more like what Gennai is, sort of half of each. This story is all fiction and plot has been changed for the sake of this story so please bear that in mind if you want point out any mistakes with franchise continuity.**

**Hope you're still interested in this because I'm interested in writing it properly again now. New chapter soon. Let me know your thoughts by reviewing, it's very much appreciated. Please also favourite and follow. Until next time then.**


	32. Chapter 32

**Time for another chapter everybody. Thank you ever so much for those fresh reviews, I enjoyed reading them. For those asking about a potential sequel set in 02, all I'll say is this. Finish this story first and read where it's going to go, then we'll talk about potential sequels.**

**Right now let's crack on. I really caught you off guard with that plot twist didn't I? Let's see what transpires now.**

**Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes (there were a couple more than usual in the last chapter I know. Sorry about the typos).**

As TK and Patamon went off in search of Myotismon, the battle between the digi-destineds, their digimon and the Bakemon continued (as Pixiemon and Phantomon continued to duel above).

"NOVA-BLAST!" shouted Greymon as he unleashed his attack on half a dozen ghost digimon who were all sent flying.

"HOWLING BLASTER!" went Garurmon too.

"Way to go guys," whooped Tai. "They're dropping like flys."

"But where's Myotismon?" asked Izzy looking around. "He's the digimon we really need to watch out for."

"He must be inside watching the battle," explained Gatomon. She knew that her former master would never engage in such a slug-fest of a battle like this. "He's likely got your friend Matt with him."

"He has Matt!?" said Garurmon turning around now. "If he has Matt inside then I'm going in there to rescue him."

"No Garurmon," said Sora trying to talk the beat digimon out of it. "You're not strong enough, he'll kill you."

"I don't care, it's all my fault that Matt was kidnapped in the first place, I have to go and rescue him."

And before anyone could stop him (not that they could, all the digimon were busy fighting) he ran off the scene to try and find a way inside to find his friend.

"You're right Sora, he has no chance of beating Myotismon," said Izzy. "He can't digivolve past the champion level. Only Patamon can because TK still has his crest."

"Speaking of TK and Patamon, where the heck have they gone?" asked Tai looking around frantically. The two had disappeared.

….

**Inside the factory**

TK and Patamon had found a way inside and were now cautiously moving around and trying to stick to the shadows to make sure they weren't seen (though nobody appeared to be around). TK was tempted to charge in all guns blazing and call for Myotismon to come out and fight. However, he'd been smart enough to realise that the element of surprise is crucial in a battle and if there was any chance they could sneak up upon Myotismon and attack him unawares then they'd try it. Giving away that they were here would let the powerful digimon prepare himself to fight.

"Where do you suppose he is TK?" whispered Patamon.

"I don't know Pat," TK whispered back. "But wherever he is, he can't hide from us for long. Once we see him, you have to be prepared to digivolve and fight him very quickly. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Good, now let's keep going."

…

**Nearby**

"Come on Pumpkinmon, let's seize our chance and get the hell out of here!"

"But what about the kid still in the cell Gotsumon?"

"There's nothing we can do for him. Besides, we need to think of ourselves. Let's get away whilst we have a chance."

"But…. he's Trowa's brother."

"And what has Trowa always told us ever since we've known him? That he doesn't like his brother and doesn't care about him. Therefore it's not up to us to have to help him out. I know it feels bad leaving him with Myotismon Pumpkinmon but even if there was a way to get him out how could we do it? We're only small and weak, we have no chance of rescuing him even if we had too. No, let's just get of here."

"(Sigh) Okay then."

The two digimon began to run as fast as they could and frantically began searching for a way out. They eventually found something, or to put it lightly, someone.

(CRASH)

Pumpkinmon felt himself run headfirst into someone and he fell backwards in a heap onto Gotusmon. Both of them lost balance and fell down.

"AARRGGHH! It's Myotismon, we've ran straight into Myotismon," the little digimon squealed as they hid cowered without looking up.

"Gotusmon? Pumpkinmon? Is that really you guys?"

The two brought themselves to shakily look up and saw someone standing over them. It wasn't Myotismon. It was TK!

"TROWA!" they both gasped and they jumped up in delight. The two digimon leapt into his arms as he dropped to embrace, all three feeling huge relief to have found each other again.

"I thought you two guys were goners," TK whispered. "Gennai told me you'd both been captured, I was devastated."

"Yeah, we were Tro," explained Gotsumon. "After you got arrested we went off on our own but before long we got set upon by a bunch of Bakemon who beat us up and brought us here."

"Yeah, it's been hell," said Pumpkinmon sadly.

"Has he been hurting you?" TK asked, not entirely sure if even he even wanted to hear the true answer.

Both Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon knew that it would be right to spare their friend the details of their horrific ordeal the past few days so they decided to tone it down.

"Not much," Pumpkinmon lied. "He slapped us about a little bit to try and find out what we knew but we didn't give anything so he just locked us in a dungeon and left us there. We've only just escaped. What's going on outside?"

"The other digi-destineds are here and they're fighting the Bakemon outside. Me and Patamon here have come to fight Myotismon. We need to defeat him and end this."

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea Trowa pal," said Gotsumon now. "Myotismon's the strongest digimon there is. Little Patamon here doesn't have much of a chance against him. Heck even all the digimon of your friends couldn't beat him combined."

"Patamon is stronger than all the others," argued TK. "He can digivolve into more powerful forms and he has me and my crest. Right Pat?"

"Yeah!" said Patamon nodding determinedly.

"See. We can handle Myotismon guys, trust me. Do you know where he's at?"

"No and we don't want to know," said Pumpkinmon. "In fact that's why we were running. We were trying to get away from here."

"Good, well then keep going," TK told them. "You guys need to clear out, this could get hairy."

"We can't let you two go after Myotismon alone!"

"Yes you will," TK ordered. "You guys have done enough. I'll be much happier knowing you guys are safe and out of harm's way. I was so upset when I thought something had happened to you. I'll be crushed if something happens now. Please, just get out of here and get far away."

"Trowa, we have something to tell you," said Gotsumon. "It's about…. your brother."

Trowa frowned.

"What about him?" he demanded, his tone becoming much darker.

"We got put in the same cell as him," Pumpkinmon explained. "We spoke to him a little bit and we talked about you mostly. We managed to escape but he's still locked in there. We think Myotismon is with him now."

TK thought about this as the other three observed him. What was he thinking.

"Okay then," he just said eventually. "Like I told you guys, get out of here and leave this to me and Patamon."

"But Trowa….."

"No buts. Go now, the pair of you. I'll see you both later, I promise."

With the first-hand knowledge of how stubborn their friend could be once he'd up his mind the two didn't attempt to argue any further. They both just sighed, nodded and began on their way.

"Good luck guys," Gotsumon called as they began to run. "Patamon, give him a good shot in the mouth from us."

"Will do!" Patamon responded with a smile. He and TK then began on their way again in the other direction, heading towards where Pumpkinmon had pointed the cell with Matt and Myotismon was.

"TK, can I ask you something?" asked Patamon now as they marched on.

"What is it Patamon?" TK replied, only-half listening.

"What were Gotsumon and Pumpkinmon talking about when they mentioned something about you getting arrested? What happened?"

"What? Oh….. er." TK didn't really want to get into this now.

"I just got into a bit of trouble with the law when I first got back here form the digital world. It was nothing serious, just it meant I had to go to police station for a few hours which meant leaving those two on their on their own because they could hardly have come with me. Anyway, it's not important. Let's get back to the task at hand."

"They said Myotismon had Matt in a cell and that he was in trouble."

"I know."

"Well then we've got to hurry!"

They both broke into a run again and came up to a door. Opening it led to a long corridor. They both ran down as fast as they could (in Patamon's case fly) and when they reached the end of it they came to a group of doors.

"This must be it," said TK now.

"I wonder which one he's in?" asked Patamon.

"Let's find out."

…...

**Inside the cell on the far left**

Matt could hear voices outside the door. It was two people talking loudly. One of the voices he definitely recognised but he couldn't remember from where from such was his state (he was still tied to the big wooden cross-shape. There was another voice too and the sound of it got him thinking. It was a voice he didn't recognise but somehow did at the same time. How was that even possible?

"Who's there?" he called out.

"Hey, did you hear that?" said one of the voices.

"What?" asked the other.

"Listen."

Realising they'd heard him Matt called out again. He didn't care who they were, he was desperate that he didn't have time to think that whether perhaps the people outside were possibly foes. The cell door began to open and light came pouring in.

"Who's there?" one voice called out.

"Matt, Matt is that you?" asked the other tentatively.

"Yes, it's me, it's me!" he cried out. "Who are you?"

"It's us," said the voice coming forward. A figure came into his view. He knew he was right to recognised that voice. It was Patamon.

"PATAMON!" he yelled overjoyed. "It's you!"

"We're here Matt, we're here," Patamon reassured him. "What have they done to you? Come on, let's get you down."

He then began trying to nibble at the ropes that bound Matt's wrists.

"Who's that there?" he asked. The 2nd voice owner was still stood in the doorway and hadn't said anything or came into the room anymore. Patamon turned to look at his companion nervously. What would happen now? What would he say or do?

"Come on," he urged. "Help me get him down."

TK slowly moved forwards so that his face became distinguishable. Matt squinted to get a look at who it was. When the person came fully into his view, his mind was blown.

"Is…. is…. that really you?" he asked breathlessly.

All the blonde boy did was nod shortly.

"TK….. IT'S YOU!" he mouthed, stunned at his brother's appearance.

TK just remained stony silent. He'd waited for this moment for so long, the moment where he and his long lost big brother finally came face to face again. He'd spent years going over it in his head trying to imagine what it would be like. What he'd say, what he'd do, how he'd act.

Now that moment had finally arrived. This was the first time they'd been together since all the way back when he and Gabumon had left him at the amusement park. He'd waited for so long in hope his brother would come back to him like he' promised but he never did. Now TK had come to him.

**We'll leave it there for tonight eh? New chapter either tomorrow or the day after. Hope you're enjoying this. Please submit feedback in the form of a review, I cannot stress how much I appreciate opening up my Inbox and seeing a "New Review" message. Please follow and favourite too, that is also very much appreciated.**

**I'm so glad people seem to be enjoying this story and are interested in seeing it play out. I promise I'll put everything into my writing now to make it as good as possible. Until next time, see ya!**


	33. Chapter 33

**Hi guys, sorry this is coming a bit later than I promised, just been mad busy and haven't had time to write of a night. Finally got a chance though so here it is, the anticipated thirty third chapter. The last one ended on a real teaser didn't it? I hope I've had you all gripped and excited for the follow up. Thanks so much for the fresh reviews too by the way, had quite a few recently which is great for me. Please keep them coming. Okay, let's get into it then.**

**Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes.**

**Chapter 33**

TK didn't say anything in response, he just stood silent and motionless. Matt couldn't believe his eyes though. This person in front of him he knew just had to be TK, he couldn't possibly be anyone else. He looked his brother up and down and tried to take him all in.

The thing that struck Matt so much was how much taller TK was since the last time he'd seen him. He was so used to TK being a little boy who only came up to his waist. Now TK looked the same height as him, if not even slightly taller.

"COME ON TK, HELP!" shouted Patamon now as he continued to struggle to untie Matt. But TK instead turned around and slowly walked back towards the door.

"TK, BROTHER, WHERE ARE YOU GOING!?" Matt roared after him. "TK, PLEASE, STAY HERE AND HEAR ME OUT!"

But TK kept walking, unable to bring himself to look at brother any longer or say anything.

"TK!" shouted Patamon desperately after his partner. The little digimon then sighed before getting back to work at trying to free Matt.

"Hold still Matt, I'll try to get you free and we'll go after him," he said.

"He's changed so much…." whispered Matt almost to himself, still in shock.

"I know," said Patamon. "And not just physically."

…...

TK walked away from the room not even caring what direction he was heading in and completely forgetting about what he'd intended to do.

"I've waited for so long to see him…." he thought to himself. "I've thought about what it will be like when I finally see him and he sees me. But just now when it finally happened, I couldn't say anything. I just froze up and I don't know why. All I know is…. heck, I don't know anything about how I feel."

He just continued to walk aimlessly, his mind racing.

…...

**Outside**

"Tai, I can't keep this much longer," puffed a tired Greymon.

"No Greymon, you have to keep fighting. All of you!" Tai was trying his best to encourage the digimon who were all beginning to feel fatigued from all the fight. They'd defeated many Bakemon but the numbers were finally beginning to turn the battle in the ghost digimons' favour.

"There's just too many," cried Mimi. "Where are they all coming from?"

"I don't know, but we can't hold them off much longer," said Izzy.

"WHERE'S TK AND PATAMON WHEN YOU NEED THEM!?" said Joe.

...

**Back inside**

Garurumon had found his way inside and was searching for Matt frantically.

He wasn't shouting out his digi-partner's name because he knew he may attract the attention of someone or something he'd rather avoid. He just wanted to find Matt and get out. Eventually he began to hear voices. Familiar voices.

"Hold still, I've nearly got it."

"Hurry Patamon, we need to go after him."

"Okay, okay, just hang on a second."

"That's Matt's voice…." Garurumon told himself with his ears pricked up. He bolted forwards towards the voices and came to find open door. He went through it and entered and saw Patamon and then yes, Matt himself, tied up.

"MATT!" he shouted relieved.

"GARURUMON!" shouted Matt in return delighted.

The champion ran over to them and bit at the ropes binding his friend and in split second Matt was free. What had been such a difficult task for little Patamon had been totally easy for the large beast.

"I'm so happy I've found you," said Garurumon giving his partner an affection nuzzle. "I'm so sorry I couldn't stop them from capturing you."

"It's okay Garurumon, it wasn't your fault," Matt replied giving his digimon a friendly pat.

"We need to get out of here," said the beast now. "Everyone is outside fighting, we have to get back and help them."

"No," said Matt shaking his head. "We need ot go find TK. He was just here. I saw Garurumon, he's changed so much."

"What did he say to you?" asked Garurumon.

"Nothing, nothing at all," Matt replied sadly.

"Where did he go?"

"He just looked at me….. and then he left. We've got to go after him and talk to him."

"I think you should just let me go after him," said Patamon now.

Both Garurumon and Matt looked at him as if that was the most outrageous situation they'd ever heard.

"Look," said Patamon trying to explain things to them as gently as possible. "TK….. TK's still very sore over what happened you and him last saw each other. I've told you that. If you go after him and try to force him to talk to you then….. then it could become very unpleasant."

"Unpleasant? What's that supposed to mean?" Matt demanded. "Spit it out Patamon."

Patamon sighed and came out with it.

"TK may try to kick your ass."

Matt frowned and looked downwards. He reached down, pulled back on his shirt that had been removed and then eventually said;

"I don't care. If he hits me then fine, I'll take it. But I will make him listen to me."

Patamon nodded.

"Fine then, it's your choice. But trust me, TK will be hard to persuade."

"So he's still stubborn as hell? Well, I guess that's one thing that hasn't changed," he said with a small smile.

…...

**Elsewhere**

TK finally stopped walking. He leant against a wall and allowed himself to slide to the floor, his thoughts having succeeded in over-whelming him.

"What am I going to do? I'll have to talk to him eventually but I don't know how I feel. I'm still angry but how should I express it?"

These thoughts consumed him for a few minutes until something made him jump out of his skin.

"So, here you are at last. You've finally can't run from me anymore."

TK jumped to see his fight to find Myotismon, the evil digimon himself, standing opposite him.

"YOU!" TK snarled.

"Yes, me," the vampire smirked. "Finally, the last of the digi-destined children. The only one who stayed in the digital world, finally I have you in my grasp after you hid from me for years."

TK snarled at him again. He'd got himself into a bad situation here though. All alone with Myotismon with no other digimon to back him up, there was nothing he could do alone. He felt very vulnerable but tried his best not to show it.

"Why would I run away for years? I don't know what you've heard but I'm not frightened of you."

Myotismon just laughed.

"Stop laughing you creep!" TK shouted now. "Today is the day we put an end to your reign of terror once and for all."

"That's quite a boast," Myotismon said now. "A big boast for a little boy."

"I'm not a little boy, not anymore!"

"Maybe so, but you're still as helpless now as you were then. There's nobody here to protect you."

TK gulped.

"Your crest, the crest of Hope. It is the only one not in my possession. Hand it over and I may spare you."

"NEVER!" shouted TK defiantly. "You'll have to pry it from my dead fingers."

"Very well," said Myotismon in an almost bored tone. He moved forwards towards TK who, quite bravely, stood his ground."

"GRISLY WI…." He roared but before he could cast the attack something jumped him from behind and stopped him.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" roared a voice.

Garurumon struggled with Myotismon whilst Matt and Patamon ran towards them.

"TK, GET OF THE WAY!" called Patamon.

TK did as he was told and leapt to side behind a bunch of large barrels. Patamon flew over to him but Matt hung back, trying to egg on his digimon.

"GET HIM GARURUMON!" he encouraged as the champion tried his best to fight with the ultimate.

"You weak fool, you're no match for me!" declared Myotismon. He managed to shake off Garurumon and then batted him aside.

"NO!" cried Matt as his digimon was defeated. Garurumon crashed hard into the wall (actually causing a few cracks to appear in the brickwork) and then reverted back to Gabumon.

"TK, TK, are you alright?" said Patamon frantically as this all happened around them.

"Yeah Pat, fine," TK replied.

"You shouldn't have run off like that, think what could have happened had we got here 20 seconds later."

"I know, I know I'm sorry. It's just, seeing him…."

They heard Matt's cry and both looked over the barrels to see Garurumon being knocked into the wall. The brave digimon hadn't managed to buy them much time.

"Patamon, now looks like the time," said TK frantically.

"Right," he nodded, full of determination. TK pull out his crest and digivice and they began to beep.

"PATAMON… DIGIVOLVE TOO… ANGEMON!"

Angemon leapt into the ring of fire immediately, ready to fight.

"YOU!" called Myotismon turning around to face his new foe. "The digimon who defeated Devimon. You may be stronger than that weakling but you're still no match for me!"

"Well let's see!" roared Angemon. He lifted his staff and began to battle with Myotismon, giving it everything he could. Angemon was also a champion digimon but he was far stronger than digimon of the level.

As this was occurring, Matt had ran over to Gabumon and had knelt to him.

"Gabumon, Gabumon, are you alright?"

"Matt…." he whimpered.

"You're alright Gabumon, you're alright. He clocked you good but nothing that'll keep you down. Come on, get up and let's get of here."

"Is TK okay?"

Matt looked up and saw his brother as he was watching Myotismon and Angemon battle and holding his flashing digivice high.

"He's fine, let's get him out of here."

**Back to TK**

"Come on Angemon, kick his butt! Take him down!" he urged.

"HAND OF FATE!"

Angemon launched his attack but Myotismon dodged it. He countered with;

"GRISLY WING!"

"Look out!" cried TK. Angemon only just managed to get out of the way. Myotismon the picked up a nearby barrel (larger than the ones TK was standing by).

"TK!" said Matt coming towards his brother.

"I've thought of a wonderful present for you," Myotismon smiled at his angel foe. He launched the barrel at Angemon (who easily avoided this time). But the barrel went past him and in the direction of Matt.

"LOOK OUT!" roared TK. He dived and knocked his brother of the barrel's path, saving him. The barrel ended up crashing against the wall behind them. TK got up from atop Matt who in turn just stared at him bewildered. TK looked him dead in the eyes. For a few seconds they merely stared each other out. Eventually TK rose to his feet and muttered;

"That doesn't change anything."

He then turned back to watch the battle.

"TK…."

**Leave it there for tonight. Again, sorry I took a bit longer than I thought to get around to posting this, just been pre-occupied as I said. **

**As normal I implore you to post a review, favourite and follow. I appreciate it so much when people show interest in my stories like any writer would. Next chapter? Hopefully by the end of the week but as you well know a promise is never solid with me but I will definitely try to get something written because it's getting to the really exciting parts. I want to write the exciting parts for you guys to read and enjoy.**

**Until next time then. **


	34. Chapter 34

**Hi everyone. Time for another chapter now. A bit later than I said but as I've stated many times before, I struggle for time and only write if I have the time and energy of a night. It's a pain because I really want to kick on now and keep giving you guys the updates you clearly want by reading the lovely reviews you've been posting.**

**Let's start then, picking it up directly where the last one finished. Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes and most of all, please enjoy.**

**Chapter 34**

Angemon and Myotismon continued to battle whilst TK and Matt continued to watch from the sidelines helplessly. The two digimon were of similar levels of strength but Myotismon was the stronger of the two, and it was beginning to show as he landed frequent blows.

"You fool," he mocked. "Did you really thing a champion level digimon like you could stand a chance of defeating me?"

"The light always triumphs over the darkness!" Angemon shot back. Myotismon just laughed.

"Maybe in every other battle you've fought in but against me it doesn't matter what element you are. I am the most powerful digimon there is and I will not be stopped in my plans to take over both worlds."

"He's starting to get the better of it," TK told himself now worriedly. "Angemon's putting up a good fight but Myotismon is definitely the one who's winning now. Angemon's going to have to digivolve again, up to another level if he wants to win. He's never digivolved past this form before but surely he can do it? All the other digimon can."

"TK," said a voice from behind him now. He turned around quickly to look at Matt, still staring at him in shock.

"I'll deal with you later," TK said angrily. "For now I'm helping my digimon. Make yourself useful and go help the others, we got this."

"But…."

"It's not up for discussion. You and Gabumon get out of here."

"I'M NOT GOING TO LEAVE YOU ALONE AGAIN!"

TK didn't expect to hear that, Matt had just blurted it out with genuine emotion is his voice and that was a rare thing. He didn't know how to answer, so he merely turned back around to watch the battle. Matt stayed close and desperately wanted TK to say something in response, not even paying attention to Myotismon and Angemon.

….

**Back outside**

Pixiemon panted heavily after finally seeing off Phantomon in what had been a very intense duel. The grim reaper digimon had managed to land a number of attacks to weaken the little fairy but he'd eventually managed to overcome him. Down below he looked downwards to see a scene of carnage. Bakemon, dozens of them, were all laid out all over the area after being knocked out by the digi-destined and their digimon. And there finally didn't seem to be any more of them coming.

"Well done kids," he called from above. "You're down to the last of them now."

"Yeah, I thought there was no way we'd be able to hold out," said Joe.

"Looks like we've finally beaten all of them," agreed Sora.

"ELECTRO SHOCKER!"

"METEOR WING!"

"NOVA BLAST!"

With those attacks the last of the few remaining enemies and finally the battle was won, at least out here.

"Phew," gasped Tai sitting down. "That's it, that's the last of them."

"I thought it would never end," gushed Mimi relieved. As they were talking though all of their digimon reverted back to their in-training forms, all of them (apart from Gatomon who hadn't done much fighting) completely exhausted.

"Woah, what are you guys doing?" asked Tai now as he knelt down beside Koromon

"We're exhausted Tai," the little pink digimon Tai.

"Yeah, that was a lot of Bakemon we had to fight, we used up all of our energy," explained Motimon.

"But what about Myotismon, we still have to fight him," said Joe now as he bent down to scoop up Bukamon.

"Patamon's going to have take care of him," said Tanemon.

"I wonder where he and TK got too?" asked Izzy now.

"And what about Garurmon?" asked Sora. "Did he manage to find Matt?"

Their questions was answered almost immediately. From the factory over the way there was an explosion. Well, more like a smash as they saw Angemon come flying towards them after being knocked through the brick wall of the factory by something.

"WOAH!" they all gasped.

"It's Angemon!" cried Mimi.

"And there's Myotismon!" shouted Tai. The vampire digimon was floating above them.

"Look over there, by the hole in the wall," pointed Izzy.

"It's Matt and TK!" gasped Sora.

They all turned to look and did indeed see the near identical brothers standing amongst the wreckage caused by the smash.

….

**TK and Matt POV**

"ANGEMON!" shouted TK in despair as digimon was sent flying through the wall with Myotismon in pursuit, determined to inflict further damage. He ran over to the wall and looked out. He saw the other kids and their digimon a few hundred feet away. He went to rush to his digimon's assistant but Matt grabbed his arm to hold him back.

"TK, NO!" he shouted stopping his brother. "You'll get hurt."

TK turned and proceeded to drive his closed fist hard into the side of Matt's face, completely knocking him over. Matt's grip on his arm was immediately lost and he fell backwards feeling dizzy from the blow. TK merely turned away and proceeded to go to Angemon. As he ran he couldn't help but think;

"Man, that felt SO good."

**Myotismon and Angemon POV**

"I warned you foolish weakling, I told you that you'd stand no chance against me. I am the strongest digimon there is and once I have all the crests in my possession I will digi-volve into an even more powerful form."

"No," said Angemon wearily as he slowly pulled himself up. "I won't let you. WE won't let you. We won't let you run amok over either world, either this one or the digital."

After this though his strength gave out on him and help slumped back to the floor in a heap, now defenceless.

Myotismon just smirked.

"A pity you won't see how wrong you are, for I will destroy you now."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" roared TK bursting onto the scene. He came up from behind and pounced on top of Angemon.

"I WON'T LET YOU HURT HIM!" TK exclaimed. "I WON'T LET YOU HURT ANYONE ANYMORE!"

"WE'VE GOT YOUR BACK TK!" cried another voice.

TK looked around to see the other kids and digimon all running over and when they get there they all stood up to Myotismon bravely too, forming a protected ring around the fallen angel.

"You idiots really think you can stop me?" Myotismon laughed.

"WE DON'T THINK, WE KNOW!" declared Tai boldly.

"YOU," Myotismon whispered now fixing his gaze on TK. "Hand over your crest boy!" he ordered.

"NO!" TK answered firmly.

"Hand it over all I'll destroy you all right now," Myotismon threatened. "I destroy each and every last one of you, human and digimon alike. And then I'll murder all of your parents."

That caused the kids to gasp.

"I'm DEADLY serious," Myotismon added for good measure.

"Oh no….." Mimi whispered in terror.

"He's not kidding," squeaked Joe.

"What do we do?" asked Kari outloud very upset.

"TK?" mouthed Tai turning towards him.

TK store down at his feet and thought hard. What could he possibly do here?"

**Matt's POV**

After a minute or two Matt finally came too and sat up. He brought his hand up to his cheek where he'd been hit, it felt quite sore. Man oh man TK could punch.

He looked up and saw the scene occurring a few hundred feet away. TK and everyone else were confronting Myotismon. He pulled himself to his feet and ran over to join them as fast as his legs would carry him.

**TK's POV**

"I WILL COUNT TO THREE!" Myotismon spat.

TK pulled his crest from around his neck and store at it as everyone else just watched silently.

"ONE."

TK shut his eyes and gripped the crest tightly in his palm. He'd made up his mind.

"TK NO!" coughed Angemon realising.

"TWO."

TK walked forwards toward Myotismon, outstretching his arm."

"NO, TK!" cried Matt running over.

"I'm sorry guys," TK whispered, almost to himself as he handed his crest over.

"THREE!" roared Myotismon reaching forward and snatching the crest out of TK's hand.

He finally had his hands on the final crest he craved so much, now he could finally fulfil the final part of his plan.

"IT'S MINE!" he roared in manic euphoria.

"WHY DID YOU GIVE YOUR CREST TO HIM?" asked Matt finally reaching them.

"I had no choice," was all TK replied.

Now out of everyone's reach, Myotismon proceed to open his jacket to reveal the other crests hanging from his from the inside lapel. He scooped them into his hand to join the crest of Hope. He then, one by one, place them around his own neck. Once he had them all on the crests all began to glow their corresponding colours and Myotismon began to spasm and glow himself.

"What's happening?" asked Tai on the ground.

"He's digi-volving," declared Pixiemon joining them.

"Digi-volving into what?" asked Sora.

"That I don't know," the little pixie answered sounding very nervous.

….

**Elsewhere**

A roadblock had been set up around the factory's perimeters by the police to prevent any members of the public from getting close. They were waiting for the heavy armor boys to arrive and go in there.

"EVERYBODY GET BACK!" ordered one cop to the crowd.

"BUT MY CHILDREN ARE IN THERE!" cried a lady with brunette hair. It was Yuuko Kamiya.

"GET BACK MA'AM!" another warned.

"My daughter is in there too!" cried Mrs Takenouchi.

"I'm sorry, but we can't let anyone go in there."

A little further back behind the crowd there was a sea of cars. Pulling up was Nancy and Hiroaki.

"Dammit," said Hiroaki pounding his hand on the wheel in frustration. "There's no way we'll be able to get through there."

"Then what are we supposed to do?" cried Nancy. "Sit here and wait whilst the boys get killed!?"

"No….. no of course not."

"Then we need to think of something."

"Okay, just give me a minute."

After a minute or two he finally thought of something to get them.

"Okay Nancy, I have an idea."

"What is it?" she asked urgently.

"I want you to get out of the car, go into the crowd and try to find all the other parents of the digi-destineds because they must be here too. Try to find as many as you can and then bring them over here."

"And what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to go and catch a lift," he said with a mischievous smirk, just like TK's.

**Several minutes later…..**

Hiroaki had borrowed the production van carrying all the camera equipment from a nearby Fuji TV news crew (the same people he worked with). Thinking he was there to cover the story with them his colleagues handed him the keys to the van without question. He started the engine and proceeded to drive back to where his own car was.

"Hey, where the hell is he going?" asked one of his colleagues, a cameraman.

"That fan has all the equipment and spare film in it!" shouted another desperately.

Hiroaki drove to his own car and sure enough Nancy was there with the parents of everyone else. He pulled up and said out of the driver's window.

"All of you, get in the back."

"What are you doing?" asked Mr Kamiya confused.

"Just get in!"

They all did as they were told and climbed in the back. Nancy joined her husband in the passenger's seat.

"What are you planning?" she asked him.

"Just watch," he told her, his face determined. When everyone was in the back he turned back and told them;

"You all better grab a hold of something, it's going to get bumpy."

He then turned back around and told Nancy;

"Put your seatbelt on and get ready."

She did as she was told.

He then looked towards the crowd of people in front of the van and beeped the van horn as loud as he could. It had the desired effect as the the crowd all jumped in fright and moved out of the way, leaving a path to the roadblock clear. Seizing his chance, Hiroaki floored it.

"Hey, what's that?" asked an office turning to look now. He saw the van coming straight at him at top speed.

"WOAH!" he screeched diving out of it's path.

"EVERYONE GET OUT OF THE WAY!" yelled another.

The van raced past them all and went through the roadblock obstacle with an almighty crash which cracked the windscreen, everyone inside was alright though.

"WAIT! WHAT ARE THEY DOING?" screamed another offer watching as the van sped of towards the factory with no one to stop it.

**End it there for tonight. Hope you liked, finally where at the main event of the evening as they'd say. Hope you enjoyed TK punching Matt and their dad Hirokai being a badass, so much fun to write. Again, sorry for taking longer than anticipated to post this. I'll hopefully get the next one up some time early next week.**

**For now, please review, favourite and follow. It's amazing how well received this story has been so many digimon fans. Over 60 reviews, all of them mostly positive and also 25 favourites and 37 follows. It's so pleasing to know people like reading the ideas for stories that are my head. Thank you so much and please keep reading. **


	35. Chapter 35

**Hi guys. Sorry about the VERY late update AGAIN, truly I am. I promise things by a certain time and I always fail miserable to deliver with all my stories. Things just get in the way and I struggle for time. Alas, here it is now so let's just get started. Picking this up from the end of the last chapter. I started another fanfic for anyone who's interested based on the beginning of Nancy and Hiroaki's relationship. A proper cheesy story compared to this one which is serious, please give it a read if you enjoy my stuff. Thanks for you patience, here we go.**

**Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes.**

**Chapter 35**

Myotismon's form was glowing a blindingly bright now like all digimon tended to do in whilst in the process of digi-volving. This was bad.

"Guys, attack him!" ordered Tai desperately. "All of you, attack with everything now, stop him from completing the digi-evolution."

Doing as they were told, all the digimon (apart from Angemon who was still on the floor) rushed forward and franticly began to attack away at Myotismon's glowing form, trying anything that may stop him from digi-volving. It was fruitless effort though.

Now all stuck in their meagre In-Training forms none of the digimon could so much as put a dent in the vampire digimon, never mind stop him from digi-volving. They all tried with all of their might, using what little energy remained them after the long battle with all those Bakemon but it was to no avail.

"BUBBLE BLOW!" they all used in unison but their puny attacks weren't anywhere near enough.

"They're not strong enough," cried Mimi.

"You're right, there's nothing we can do to stop him," said Izzy now sounding very worried.

"They just have no more energy left," said Matt now walking over (TK didn't look at him).

"Then what does that mean?" asked Mimi nervously.

"It means we're screwed," cried Joe. "Totally screwed."

"Not yet," said Gennai.

"What do you mean?" Sora asked him. Pixiemon answered her. He and Gennai knew there was one last hope.

"All of you (he was addressing the digimon), you need to all harness your inner strength and give whatever have to Angemon," he explained. "Angemon is the strongest digimon here and only he has a chance. If you bond your life-forces with him then we may have a chance."

"But they barely have anything left," shouted Tai now. "It won't be anywhere near enough to make a difference."

"Just because you're all beat up and can't digivolve doesn't mean you're out of energy," Gennai told him now. "You all have an inner life-force deep inside you. Every digimon has, it's what makes each and every one of you unique."

"How do we do this?" asked Koramon.

"Focus your minds and calm yourself. You should feel it."

All of the digimon went quiet now and began to concentrate as all their human partners watched on in awe. Whilst this was happening Myotismon continued his digi-evolution.

After 30 seconds all of the small and weak digimon all began to glow.

"Whoa….." everyone mouthed as they watched.

"Yes," said Gennai. "That's it. Keep focusing, you're bringing your strength to the surface. Once it's there direct towards Angemon."

They all did as he instructed and after a few seconds everyone watched in awe as the glows which covered all the digimon now began to darken again fall off, as if they it was being sucked off by some unseen force. The glow almost look like tiny pyreflies. The light began to move themselves onto Angemon who had come to stand next to TK.

"What is this?" the angel Digimon asked as the glows of energy began to effortlessly began to seep into him without him feeling a single thing.

"It's their inner-energy," Gennai explained. "They're redirecting it to you Angemon, you are receiving this from these brave digimon in order to fight Myotismon. You should feel you're energy returning and actually increasing Angemon. You need all the strength you can get if you are to win."

"Angemon?" asked TK stepping back to observe. Soon enough the angel was soon glowing so bright that he became unable to distinguish. Then…..

"Angemon… digivolve too… MAGNAANGEMON!"

They all gasped at the sight of this new digimon. He was Angemon's ultimate level form and he too was an angel. He was covered in holy armour and now had four angel wings, as well a purple sword. He looked extremely powerful indeed.

"Angemon?" said TK who looked at his new digimon flabbergasted.

"I am MagnaAngemon now TK," the angel told him.

"MagnaAngemon….." said Matt now as he stood transfixed like everyone else. But their attention was soon snatched by someone else.

"MYOTISMON…. DIGIVOLVE TOO…"

The evil digmon had finally began to change form. And boy oh boy did he change. Myotismon normally stood over 6 feet tall which was quite small for an ultimate digimon's standards. Now though he began to grow. And he grow a whole as everyone watched in horror. To the size of a tree. Then the size of a house. Then the size of building.

"VENONMYOTISMON! the ultra-powerful digimon roared now, so loud that the whole city must have been able to hear him. Everyone in the city came out of their offices, houses, cars, looked out of the windows or watched on TV as this monster suddenly appeared in their city. It was like they were all in a real-life disaster movie. Children were crying scared, adults were running around franticly after deciding to run away now. Camera crews were trying desperately to get the monster in focus. The whole city erupted into anarchy.

"OH MY GOD!" gasped Mimi on the verge of tears.

"LOOK AT THE SIZE OF HIM!" shouted Izzy completely gobsmacked.

"HOW ON EARTH ARE WE GOING TO BEAT HIM NOW?" gulped Joe.

"I don't know," as all Tai could say.

"HE'S TOO STRONG!"cried Sora feeling very frightened like everyone else.

Both Matt and TK though remained silent, lost for words. The skies were very dark now and rain began to fall from the sky. It was light but you could feel a storm in the air, it was going to get heavy soon.

Gennai had watched in disbelief as his he watched VenonMyotismon take form too. This was truly his worst nightmare confirmed. There was only one hope.

"MagnaAngemon," he said turning towards the angel. "You're our only hope."

"I know," MagnaAngemon replied coolly. He too was taking looking up this digimon, sizing up his foe. "He is very powerful but I will give it everything I have but I don't know if it will be enough."

"No," said TK now. Everyone looked at him as he store intently at MagnaAngemon. "I don't want to hear talk like that MagnaAngemon. You WILL beat him. You will defeat him and end this. You understand me."

This was classic TK. Well, older TK. The TK who had grown up in the digimon. Never admit defeat, never fear or run from adversity. Meet it head on and win. MagnaAngemon understood what it was TK was saying and nodded determinedly.

"Let's do it," TK said now nodding himself. He ran over to his digimon, climbed onto his back and before anyone could stop them MagnaAngemon took flight.

"TK NO!" screamed Matt running forward to try stop his brother but he was unsuccessful. Before he could reach them MagnaAngemon headed off with TK on his back to meet and fight VenomMyotismon.

"WHAT'S HE DOING!? demanded Matt aloud. "HE COULD GET HIMSELF KILLED!"

"He should have stayed here with us," said Tai now in agreement.

"This is obviously a battle TK and MagnaAngemon feel they need to fight together," said Gennai now as everyone turned to look him.

"TK SHOULD HAVE STAYED HERE!" shouted Matt now very emotional.

"I agree that I would not have encouraged him to go up there and fight but to instead have waited with his. There is something you must understand though Yamato."

"Understand what?" said Matt.

"That your brother, TK, he is now old enough to make decisions for himself. He is not a little boy that you have to coddle anymore, he is big enough to decided his own actions."

Matt just grimaced at this and store at the floor. Gennai was right, TK wasn't young and helpless. His brother didn't need him or want his help or love anymore, that had been made obvious to him. Though he hated to admit it, who was he to tell his brother to do or not do something anymore? TK was OLDER than him, at least physically. His brother had grown up without him and to him TK he Matt was a stranger. It broke his heart to think this way but he had to accept reality.

At that moment as everyone stood in awkward silence with the light rain beating down upon them they heard the sound of screeching. They all looked to see a van speeding towards them. It finally skidded to a halt only meters from them and the doors flung open. It was all of their parents, they'd somehow made it here.

"MOM, DAD!" they all yelled in unison.

The parents all got out of the van in a hurry and sprinted towards their respective children to pull them into an embrace.

"We need to get of here," said Mr Kamiya after letting go of Kari from a hug. "It's not safe."

"That monster is going to destroy everything, we need to run," said Mr Izumi.

"MagnaAngemon and TK have gone to fight him," said Kari now.

"HE'S WHAT!?" said Hiroaki now coming over now.

"His digimon, MagnaAngemon went to try and fight VenomMyotismon," explained Izzy. "TK went up there with him."

"Oh no," Nancy gasped looking up at the giant monster.

"It was his decision to make," said Matt now without looking at his parents. Gennai's words had hit him hard and had a profound effect. They both turned to look at him and Nancy noticed something.

"Matt dear, what happened to your face?" she asked after noticing that her son had a red mark on his cheek. Matt decided to just admit the truth to her and to everyone.

"TK hit me," he said quietly. Nancy gasped and Hiroaki just sighed sadly.

"Come on," said Shin, Joe's older brother now. "We need to get clear of this area. We're in danger."

"NO!" said Matt defiantly now turning to look at everyone. "We're not leaving here, not until the battle is over."

Everyone was stunned at his outburst but they let him continue on.

"I left TK behind once and I won't leave him again. I'm staying here and I'm waiting for him to come back, just like he waited for me. I'm sick of feeling guilty for what happened to him, I won't let something like that happen again. I'm waiting until he and MagmaAngemon defeat VenonMyotismon and come back here. And when he does I'm going to talk to him and tell him how sorry I am. I'm absolutely not running away.

When he'd finished he looked around into everyone's face to see what their reactions were. He first looked at Tai who eventually nodded in support. As did Sora, then Izzy, Joe, Mimi and little Kari. As did all of their moms and dads. Then he turned towards his and TK's own parents. They nodded in agreement and determination too. It was decided.

**Thanks for reading and being so patient with my sorry behind. I've have this chapter in the brain for a long while but I could just never got around to writing it. The last week or so I finally found time to write so I did this and also started that other story. I'll be writing the simultaneously from now and I'll tentatively schedule the next chapter for this story to be by the end of the week. PLEASE review and let me know how you feel about this chapter, your feedback means everything. Also please keep favouriting and following, it is also highly appreciated. So then, until next time (whenever that'll be lol) see ya!**


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